Armed Forces: Housing

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 19 January 2009,  Official Report, column 1043W, on armed forces: housing, how many complaints made to Modern Housing Solutions originated in each  (a) parish,  (b) local authority area and  (c) region.

Kevan Jones: The information is not held in the format requested. It is only possible to provide a regional breakdown of complaint origins and this is provided in the following table.
	
		
			  Modern Housing Solution Region  Area  Number 
			  East Brampton 10 
			  Chicksands 4 
			  Colchester 19 
			  Cottesmore 14 
			  Marham 5 
			  Thetford 5 
			  Wattisham 14 
			 East total  71 
			
			  West Abingdon 23 
			  Brize Norton 14 
			  Bushey 28 
			  High Wycombe 12 
			  Kingston 31 
			  Uxbridge 20 
			  Woolwich 5 
			 West total  133 
			
			  North Boulmer 2 
			  Catterick 15 
			  Waddington 16 
			  York 9 
			 North total  42 
			
			  South East Aldershot 60 
			  Arborfield 16 
			  Brompton 12 
			  Folkestone 9 
			  Gosport 22 
			  Portsmouth 20 
			 South East total  139 
			
			  South West Bovington 9 
			  Colerne 1 
			  Helston 3 
			  Larkhill 44 
			  Lympstone 3 
			  Lyneham 17 
			  Plymouth 6 
			  Warmister 10 
			 South West total  93 
			
			  West Chester 5 
			  Haverfordwest 1 
			  Hereford 5 
			  St. Athan 2 
			  Telford 12 
			  Weeton 5 
			 West total  30 
			
			 Total  508

European Fighter Aircraft

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 4 March 2009,  Official Report, column 54WS, on aircraft (available support), what the payment schedule is for the contract with BAE Systems in respect of the Typhoon availability support service.

Quentin Davies: The financial arrangements for the Typhoon Availability Service (TAS) contract with BAE Systems include a payment schedule whereby payments are made monthly in arrears across the five year period of the contract; in addition, the contract includes incentivised performance targets and a gainshare arrangement.

Exercise

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what methodology his Department uses to assess progress towards the target of two million people becoming more active by 2012; what date is being used as the baseline for the target; to which age groups the target is applied; what criteria are used to decide whether a person has become more active; and whether the target is applied to people with  (a) mental health problems,  (b) physical disabilities and  (c) learning disabilities.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Government's 2012 Legacy Action Plan (LAP), published in June 2008, sets a cross-Government target to get two million more adults active through sport and physical activity by 2012. DCMS and Sport England lead on getting one million more people doing more sport. A range of Government departments will deliver programmes that will increase wider physical activity. Many of these programmes are outlined in the Department of Health's (DoH) new Physical Activity Plan 'Be Active, Be Healthy" published on 11 February 2009.
	Sport England's Active People survey will be the measure for the two million target. The baseline for the target will be established using the 2007-08 Active People survey, the results of which were published on 11 December 2008. The target is based on those adults aged 16 and over achieving three sessions of at least 30 minutes of at least moderate intensity activity per week. The target will also be informed by additional data collected on dance, active conservation and gardening from January 2009. A newly established Physical Activity Programme Board, chaired jointly by DoH and DCMS, will oversee the delivery of programmes against the LAP target.
	The LAP target applies to all adults aged over 16. Both the Sport England Strategy and Be Active Be Healthy recognise that people with disabilities, ranging from physical and neurological to sensory impairments and learning disabilities are at particular risk from inactivity.

Airports: Security

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 18 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1146W, on airports: security, if he will make it his policy that passengers concerned about the effects on health of body scanners using backscatter x-ray technology have the option of a manual pat search should such technology be introduced.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There are currently no plans to introduce back-scatter x-ray technology at UK airports. All security technology is assessed to ensure that it is fully compliant with health and safety legislation.

Heathrow Airport

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2009,  Official Report, column 987W, on Heathrow Airport, what the position was which was confirmed by advice to Ministers in September 2007 and subsequently agreed to for the purposes of the Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport public consultation; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The hon. Member's previous questions related to air quality modelling results. The advice to Ministers in September 2007 confirmed the conclusions of the environmental assessment programme on the ability to meet noise and air quality limits if Heathrow was expanded. These conclusions were subsequently set out in the "Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport" consultation document published in November 2007.

Heathrow Airport: Railways

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the oral statement of 15 January 2009,  Official Report, columns 355-60, on transport infrastructure, whether the Network Rail site at Old Oak Common is among those locations being considered for the proposed Heathrow rail hub.

Paul Clark: "Britain's Transport Infrastructure: High Speed Two", published on 15 January and available on the Department for Transport's website and the Libraries of the House, sets out what we expect "High Speed Two" to deliver. The remit of the company is, inter alia, to consider and provide advice to the Government by the end of 2009 on options for a "Heathrow International" interchange station on the Great Western main line including an interchange with Crossrail.

Performing Arts

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has engaged any  (a) actors,  (b) musicians and  (c) other performers to support its initiatives over the last five years.

Geoff Hoon: The Department for Transport has engaged actors, musicians and other performers over the last five years. Performers are typically engaged through third-party suppliers contracted to deliver marketing and education products or staff training.
	Examples include the use of performers by the central Department for THINK! Road Safety and Act On CO2 climate change commercials for radio, television and cinema as well as press, poster and online material. Driving Standards Agency and Vehicle and Operator Services Agency have used performers in educational videos for young driver training and MOT testers respectively. The Highways Agency has used actors for role play in recruitment selection campaigns where this was considered beneficial and value for money. The Department has also used actors in role play exercises to aid learning and understanding in management development programmes and diversity awareness training for example.
	Central records do not identify the number and discipline of the performers engaged directly or indirectly by the Department and additional detail could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Railways: Standards

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many incidents of train  (a) delays and  (b) cancellations as a result of snow and freezing conditions there have been since 19 December 2008.

Paul Clark: Information on the disruption of rail services, including incidents of train delays and cancellations as a result of snow and freezing conditions, is collected and processed by Network Rail. The right hon. and learned Member may wish to contact Network Rail for this information at the following address:
	Iain Coucher
	Chief Executive
	Network Rail
	Kings Place
	York Way
	London
	N1 9AG.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), how many of the 12,500 long-term jobs he estimates will be created or safeguarded by the contract to re-equip the East Coast and Great Western Main Lines with new inter-city express trains will be in  (a) train maintenance and  (b) the supply chain.

Paul Clark: Agility Trains anticipates that of the estimated 12,500 total jobs to be created or safeguarded, 2,500 will be directly employed by the Agility Trains consortium. Of these, an estimated 1,400 jobs will be safeguarded in train maintenance, and an estimated 1,100 jobs will be created in train and factory construction.
	Of the remaining estimated 10,000 jobs, Agility Trains anticipate that they are likely to be within train vehicle component suppliers, third party suppliers and the wider economy.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), how much he expects to be invested in the UK by Agility Trains following the award of the contract.

Paul Clark: Agility Trains has stated publicly that it is committed to spending 70 per cent. of the contract value in the UK.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), what discussions he has had with Agility Trains on  (a) the proposed sites for the new maintenance depots and  (b) upgrades to existing maintenance depots following the award of the contract.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport facilitated visits to existing Network Rail depots for all bidders during early 2008. Dialogue regarding the bidders' depots and maintenance proposals continued with both Agility Trains and Express Rail Alliance throughout the bidding process, up to the selection of Preferred Bidder. Further dialogue with Agility Trains, the Preferred Bidder, will continue until the award of the contract.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), whether the  (a) body shells,  (b) engines and  (c) bogies for the contract to supply new inter-city express trains are to be manufactured in the UK.

Paul Clark: Agility Trains has said that the body shells for the new trains will initially be made in Japan using Hitachi's friction stir-welding technique. The Department for Transport anticipates that Agility Trains will establish facilities for friction on stir-welding in the UK as soon as practicable following contract award. The company is yet to announce the source country for either the engines or the bogies for the new trains, but has committed to spend 70 per cent. of the Super Express Trains contract value in the UK.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), whether an environmental impact assessment was made of the specifications for the supply of new inter-city express trains contained in bids submitted by  (a) Agility Trains and  (b) Bombardier Trains.

Paul Clark: The delivery of an environmentally sustainable solution for the Intercity Express Programme is a key objective for the Department for Transport (see section 1.2 of the Invitation to Tender). The technical appraisal of the Concept Train Design, from both Agility Trains and Express Rail Alliance, included an assessment of the environmental considerations defined by sections 3.6-3.9 (inclusive) of the Train Technical Specification and section 7.1.2 of the Invitation to Tender.
	Both the Invitation to Tender and the Train Service Specification can be accessed via:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/pi/iep/iepinvitationtotender/

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), when he expects Agility Trains to establish facilities for friction stir welding.

Paul Clark: The Department for Transport anticipates that Agility Trains will establish facilities for friction stir-welding in the UK as soon as practicable following contract award.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), if he will make representations to his Japanese counterpart on the market access for the export of trains and rolling stock to Japan.

Paul Clark: The European Commission has highlighted the difficulties of entry for non-Japanese companies into the Japanese rail market. The Foreign Office continues to work with the European Commission—which is taking the lead in this area—to raise the issue of barriers to market entry with the Japanese government.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), how many UK-based suppliers he estimates will benefit indirectly from the contract with Agility Trains.

Paul Clark: Agility Trains announced on 12 February that it was in advanced discussions with 20 UK-based suppliers. Since then, the company has put out a call for further interested suppliers, which can be found on their website at
	www.agilitytrains.com

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), when he expects to announce the location of the new train assembly and manufacturing facility to be established by Agility Trains following the award of the contract.

Paul Clark: The announcement of the location of the site is expected to be made by Agility Trains following contract award later this year.

Rolling Stock

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 12 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1531-44, on new trains (investment), whether production of the new inter-city express trains in the UK will be at  (a) a manufacturing facility and  (b) an assembly facility.

Paul Clark: The production of the new Super Express trains will be in a UK manufacturing facility.

Surveys

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 362W, on departmental surveys, if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of the 2008 staff survey undertaken by his Department.

Geoff Hoon: Staff surveys are valuable tools used by Departments to help them improve performance. The results of the most recent survey of the central Department for Transport are available on the Civil Service website at:
	http://beta.civilservice.gov.uk/about/who/statistics/staff-survevs.aspx

Transport: Coastal Areas

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps the Government is taking to improve transport links to seaside resorts.

Paul Clark: Transport relating to seaside resorts in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Assembly government.
	When determining funding for transport schemes in England, the Department does not explicitly take into consideration the fact that a settlement is a seaside town. The Government take a wide range of factors into account—including regeneration benefits—in the economic assessment of a scheme's benefits.
	In recent years it has funded a number of local authority projects that improve links to seaside resorts. These include the Scarborough Integrated Transport Scheme and the A158 Burgh-Le-Marsh Bypass, which serves Skegness.
	A further 13 projects that will improve transport links to seaside towns in England have funding allocated in the Regional Funding Allocation programme. These schemes are at various stages of development and should be completed between now and 2019, subject to meeting the Department's business case requirements.
	As well as funding from the Regional Funding Allocation, local transport authorities are able to target resources, according to local needs and priorities, from their Revenue Support Grant and Rural Bus Subsidy Grant allocations to improve transport links to seaside resorts in their area.
	A number of rail lines serving seaside resorts have benefited from the joint working of local authorities and the railway industry through community rail partnerships.

Bluetongue Disease: Vaccination

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of livestock farmers in each region who have vaccinated their livestock against bluetongue disease; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: Vaccination in England and Wales for BTV8 is voluntary. This approach gives farmers the opportunity to judge for themselves the benefits of vaccinating. Experience in 2008 suggests that a majority of farmers do see the benefits of vaccination. A voluntary programme therefore enables these farmers to protect their livestock at the minimum possible cost.
	We monitor uptake through sales data, farmers are not required to notify us of vaccination due to the additional burdens and costs this would involve. During 2008 overall level of uptake across England was 60 per cent., or 16 million doses sold.
	
		
			  Region  Percentage uptake( 1) 
			 South of England 94 
			 South East >95 
			 South West 83 
			 East Midlands 73 
			 West Midlands 53 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 42 
			 North West 27 
			 North East 26 
			 (1) Approximately, according to sales data. 
		
	
	Vaccination played a vital role in keeping us free from circulating BTV8 disease last year. If adequate vaccination levels are not reached this year, and BTV8 is reintroduced, the disease will spread to unvaccinated animals. The disease is still present and circulating in neighbouring EU member states. Farmers and livestock keepers should not become complacent and should vaccinate their animals for BTV8 as soon as possible.

Farms: Bio-security

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to improve bio-security on farms.

Jane Kennedy: It is the livestock keepers responsibility and it is in their interests to practice good husbandry and biosecurity procedures in order to minimise the risk of disease and the economic impacts on reduced productivity.
	Government work in partnership with industry to raise awareness of and promote good husbandry and biosecurity practice. This includes; buying in healthy stock, providing clean food and water, maintaining good standards of hygiene, separation/isolation of new or ill stock, traceability and proper record keeping.
	Encouraging and incentivising livestock keepers to implement good biosecurity on the ground is part of the work currently being taken forward with industry as part of the Responsibility and Cost sharing programme of work. This includes DEFRA's 'Give Disease the Boot' campaign promoted through Livestock Market Roadshows and the Farm Health Planning Initiative. This initiative is about livestock owners working closely with their vet or other adviser on setting targets for their animals' health and welfare and taking steps to measure, manage and monitor productivity.

Flood Control

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Stafford of 20 January 2009,  Official Report, column 1286W, on the Floods and Water Bill, when he expects to publish the draft Floods and Water Bill.

Huw Irranca-Davies: I refer the hon. Member for North Southwark and Bermondsey to my reply of 9 December 2008,  Official Report, column 39W.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the Minister of State for Farming and the Environment plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, dated 3 February 2009, on a ban on the use of glue traps.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 20 March 2009
	I have on the 24 March 2009 responded to the hon. Member's letter about the use of glue traps.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire, of 26 January 2009, on emergency response to flooding.

Huw Irranca-Davies: holding answer 23 March 2009
	A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 28 February 2009.

Rural Development Programme

James Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what formal notifications and requests for revisions have been made in accordance with Articles 6-12 of Council Regulation 1974/2006 to amend the Rural Development Programme for England; and how many opportunities to notify the Commission of amendments remain in the programming period.

Huw Irranca-Davies: We have asked the European Commission to consider two amendments to the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) 2007-13 since it was approved in December 2007.
	The first notification of a proposal to amend the programme was made in October 2008, principally to put in place a number of changes to our agri-environment scheme, Environmental Stewardship (ES), recommended by the ES Review of Progress which was published in May 2008. A second notification was made in February 2009 and was made to put in place the changes to provide support for the uplands, as announced by the Secretary of State in December 2008, make additional ES options available for farmers in the Isles of Scilly, and to update the programme's state aid provisions. Neither of these amendments have yet been approved by the Commission.
	The implementing rules (Commission Regulation (EC) No 1975/2006) allow us to propose up to four revisions to our programme in each calendar year until the programming period concludes at the end of 2013.

Wood

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what provision the European Commission's proposed Regulation on the obligations of operators who place timber and timber products on the market makes in respect of powers for member states  (a) to seize illegal timber that may enter the market and  (b) to penalise operators trading in such timber.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Commission's proposal for a regulation: the 'due diligence regulation', states that an operator which first places timber or timber products on the market must apply a system of due diligence to minimise the risk of placing illegal timber on the Community market.
	The nature of the penalties to be applied in respect of a breach of the regulation has not yet been established. Member states, not the European Community, have competence in relation to the conferral of powers on enforcement bodies and the setting of penalties, and no decision has yet been made by the UK Government on seizure of illegal timber which has entered the Community market, or on penalties for operators trading in such timber.
	We will be consulting on the UK negotiating position on the regulation and the European Parliament's amendments to the regulation in March 2009.

Afghanistan: Detainees

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 26 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1741-42W, on Afghanistan: detainees, if he will now disclose the relevant information.

Bill Rammell: According to our records, the answer of 28 April 2003 was based on discussions with the US at the time regarding allegations about the detention of terrorist suspects on Diego Garcia. We were informed that terrorist suspects were not being detained on the island. This was confirmed at the political/military talks on Diego Garcia in June 2003.
	My officials will be in touch with the hon. Member to provide the relevant information.

Anti-Semitism

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 9 March 2009,  Official Report, column 41W, on anti-Semitism, on what recent occasions  (a) he and  (b) other Ministers in his Department have condemned anti-Semitism; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The Government condemn all acts of racism, anti-Semitism and religious intolerance. My hon. Friend, the Minister of State, (Bill Rammell) specifically re-iterated this in the House of Commons on 13 January 2009,  Official Report, column 132, and my noble Friend Lord Malloch-Brown, the Minister for Africa, Asia and the UN, during the Gaza debate in the House of Lords on 6 February 2009,  Official Report, column 931.
	The London Declaration of the recent conference held by the Inter-parliamentary Coalition Combating anti-Semitism, co-hosted by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, called on legislators to "expose, challenge and isolate political actors who engage in hate against Jews and target the state of Israel as a Jewish collectivity." It also calls on governments to "challenge any foreign leader, politician or public figure who denies, denigrates or trivializes the Holocaust and must encourage civil society to be vigilant to this phenomenon and to openly condemn it." My noble Friend Lord Malloch-Brown addressed the conference and condemned anti-Semitism in unequivocal terms.

Cuba: Political Prisoners

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of the number of political prisoners in Cuba.

Gillian Merron: We remain concerned about the number of political prisoners in Cuba. The Government of Cuba tightly controls information about their prisons so it is hard to give an accurate figure. We follow estimates from a range of sources. The latest report, in February 2009, from the non-governmental Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation estimated 205 political prisoners. Amnesty International puts the figure at 57.
	The UK continues to raise concerns about political prisoners with the Cuban authorities, and did so most recently during Cuba's universal periodic review at the UN Human Rights Council in February 2009. The UK also recommended that Cuba allow international observers into the country to review the prisons.

Departmental Public Consultation

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what payments for  (a) polling and  (b) other services his Department has made to (i) Deborah Mattinson and (ii) Opinion Leader Research Limited since 31 December 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made no payments to either of these suppliers since 31 December 2007.

Departmental Public Expenditure

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 2 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 1237-8W, on departmental public expenditure, what estimate he has made of the additional amount in sterling required to meet the UK's commitments in respect of  (a) international subscriptions and  (b) peacekeeping activities in (i) 2008-09 and (ii) 2009-10.

David Miliband: The information is as follows:
	 (a) International Subscriptions
	(i) 2008-09
	The forecast cost of the UK's international subscriptions in 2008-09 is £145.765 million (an updated figure from that quoted in my response of 2 March 2009,  Official Report, column 239W, of £142.73 million).
	For international subscriptions the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has a cost-sharing agreement with HM Treasury (HMT) where HMT will cover 60 per cent. of the additional funds required over £102 million. Therefore the cost to the FCO is £119.5 million, where the additional sterling required is £17.5 million.
	(ii) 2009-10
	The forecast cost of the UK's International Subscriptions in 2009-10 is £193 million (an updated figure from that quoted in my response of 2 March 2009,  Official Report, column 239W, of £146 million).
	Based on the agreement with HMT, the FCO's share of this cost is £138.36 million, where the additional sterling required is projected at £36.36 million. However, this figure will change depending on exchange rate movements.
	 (b) Peacekeeping
	(i) 2008-09
	The forecast cost of assessed peacekeeping costs paid in foreign currencies by the FCO in 2008-09 is £310.4 million. A detailed breakdown of this estimate is provided in response of 23 March 2009,  Official Report, column 26W. The additional amount in sterling required above budget will be offset by a transfer of £29.4 million from the FCO. This transfer includes gains from the benefits of the advanced purchase of foreign currency based on estimates at the time of the Spring Supplementary.
	(ii) 2009-10
	UN peacekeeping assessed costs for 2009-10—based on current UN Security Council mandates—will not be agreed by the UN General Assembly until June 2009. However, based on our assumptions of those and other assessed costs and the advanced purchase of foreign currency so far, we have budgeted for £456 million of payments from Department for International Development/Ministry of Defence/FCO conflict funds.

Elections: Monitoring

Bruce George: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the British delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly on proposals to reduce his Department's budget for election observation in 2009-10.

Caroline Flint: I refer my right hon. Friend to the written ministerial statement given on 25 March 2009 by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary on the Government's plans for funding conflict prevention, peacekeeping and stabilisation activity,  Official Report, columns 17-19WS.
	We greatly value the election observation work of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe and will continue to fund this activity on an ad-hoc basis.

International Organisations: Finance

David Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 9 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 50-52W, how much he expects to pay in subscriptions to each international organisation from his Department's budget in  (a) 2008-09,  (b) 2009-10 and  (c) 2010-11; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 16 March 2009
	The information is as follows:
	 Subscriptions to each international organisation in 2008-09
	The projected costs for 2008-09 are £145.765 million. This is an updated figure from that referred to in the answer of 27 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1199W-1200W.
	
		
			  (a) Subscriptions to each international organisation in 2008-09 
			  Subscription  £000 
			 UN regular budget and other UN contributions 73,699 
			 Council of Europe 23,938 
			 North Atlantic Treaty Organisation 20,870 
			 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 15,250 
			 Commonwealth secretariat 4,343 
			 Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe 3,745 
			 Western European Union/others 3,920 
			 Total 145,765 
		
	
	 Subscriptions to each international organisation in 2009-10
	The projected costs for 2009-10 are £193 million but are uncertain. This is an updated figure from that referred to in the answer of 27 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 1199W-1200W. The fall in the value of the sterling will have an impact on subscriptions paid in US dollars and euros.
	 Subscriptions to each international organisation  in 2010- 11
	The projected costs for 2010-11 are around £163 million but, given the time scale, this figure is even less certain than that for 2009-10. Many international organisations will not start to set their budget for 2010 (calendar year) until the end of 2009 and for 2011 (calendar year) until the end of 2010. In negotiating with international organisations when they set their budgets, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will endeavour to limit budget increases to zero real growth.

Kosovo: Politics and Government

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what contribution the Government plan to make to the activities of Eulex in Kosovo.

Caroline Flint: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement of 25 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 17-19WS, giving details of conflict prevention funding for the coming financial year.
	The allocation for Wider Europe has been set at £33 million, from which we will contribute £2.55 million to the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo (EULEX). This will fund 32 UK secondees in the mission, a reduction from the current figure of 63. In addition, through the UK's share of the overall Common Foreign and Security Policy budget we are contributing to the common costs for EULEX (€34.85 million or 17 per cent. of €205 million).
	We will continue to offer EULEX our full political support in the implementation of its mandate throughout Kosovo.

Middle East: Peace Negotiations

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with Senator George Mitchell on the Middle East Peace Process since his appointment as President Obama's Middle East envoy.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary last met Senator Mitchell during his visit to Washington on 18 March 2009. They discussed a range of issues related to the Middle East Peace Process. Including the importance of having a clear peace plan based on the Arab Peace Initiative.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary re-iterated the importance of keeping alive long-term vision of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in security, as an essential basis for regional stability.

Redundancy

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to the answer of 25 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1208-10W, on redundancy, which posts were vacated by the staff who received severance packages of £100,000 and above; and if he will make a statement.

Gillian Merron: holding answer 16 March 2009
	My Answer of 25 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 1208-10W, detailed the total cost to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) of funding each retirement package, not the value of packages received by staff themselves. The amount received by staff would have been considerably less than the total cost to the FCO of each package. Our resource accounts record all the costs charged to the FCO, including pension entitlements that staff would have received anyway from the Civil Service Pension Scheme and administrative charges picked up by the FCO. They do not record the actual extra sums received by staff for leaving early. We cannot therefore identify which posts were vacated by staff whose severance package falls within the terms of this question.
	As a result of our early retirement schemes, we have been able to reduce the size of our senior management grades by more than 20 per cent. and to restructure FCO Services, then an Executive agency, for successful launch in 2008 as a Trading Fund.
	The size and structure of early retirement packages are determined by the provisions of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme and based on pension entitlements. The FCO does not have discretion to depart from these terms.

Syrian Arab Republic

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many times he has visited Syria on official business in the last three years; and what plans he has for further such visits.

Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary visited Syria in November 2008, the first ministerial visit since Baroness Symons in 2004.
	He has no immediate plans for a further visit. I will be visiting Syria shortly.

Departmental Public Consultation

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many public consultations his Department has conducted in the last 12 months; how long each consultation was open for; how many responses were received in each case; and what the cost of conducting each consultation was.

Jonathan R Shaw: The following table provides details of each consultation in my Department in the 12 months to the end of February 2009.
	Providing a full answer to the last two parts of the question could be done only at disproportionate cost. The number of responses to our consultations varies greatly. For example we received over 1,000 formal written submissions to our 'No one written off' consultation on welfare reform, but this represents only part of the picture, given that we received numerous responses in internet-based discussion forums, and a large amount of face-to-face input at a range of different events and meetings. In contrast, for our more specialist, and often more limited, consultations in the private pensions area, for example, typically 50-100 responses are received for each.
	On costs, the costs quoted for our four largest consultations during the last 12 months, are for services procured specifically to support these consultations, for example, professional production of documents, cost of consultation events, and research. In the case of our smaller consultations, these services are not used.
	
		
			  DWP Consultations in year ended February 2008 
			  Consultation  Consultation  p eriod  Weeks  Cost (£) 
			 The Pensions Regulator (Miscellaneous Amendment) Regulations 2009 15 December 2008 to 6 February 2009 7 (1)— 
			 The Occupational, Personal and Stakeholder Pensions (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2009 8 December 2008 to 30 January 2009 7 (1)— 
			 Financial Assistance Scheme and Incapacity Benefit (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2009 5 November 2008 to 3 December 2008 4 (1)— 
			 The Occupational Pension Schemes (Contracting-Out) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 2 September 2008 to 28 October 2008 8 (1)— 
			 No One Written Off: Reforming Welfare to Reward Responsibility 21 July 2008 to 22 October 2008 13 (2)268,000 
			 Pension Risk Sharing Consultation Paper 5 June 2008 to 28 August 2008 12 (1)— 
			 The Pension Sharing (Pension Credit Benefit) (Amendment) 29 May 2008 to 21 July 2008 8 (1)— 
			 The Pension Protection Fund (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No 2) Regulations 2008 28 May 2008 to 5 June 2008 2 (1)— 
			 The powers of the Pensions Regulator-Amendments to the anti-avoidance measures in the Pensions Act 2004 25 April 2008 to 20 June 2008 8 (1)— 
			 Financial Assistance Scheme (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 27 March 2008 to 9 May 2008 6 (1)— 
			 Financial Assistance Scheme (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2008 6 March 2008 to 20 March 2008 3 (1)— 
			 Revision of the Annuity Factors employed by the Financial Assistance Scheme 6 March 2008 to 18 April 2008 6 (1)— 
			 Independent Living Strategy Consultation 3 March 2008 to 20 June 2008 17 (2)70,000 
			 The Pension Protection Fund (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 19 December 2007 to 12 February 2008 8 (1)— 
			 Pensions: Contracting-Out - Self Invested Personal Pensions and Other Changes 10 December 2007 to 29 February 2008 12 (1)— 
			 Improving Specialist Disability Employment Services 3 December 2007 to 10 March 2008 14 (2)106,000 
			 (1) These consultations were undertaken at low cost as an integral part of the policy-making processes; it is therefore not possible to separate out specific consultation costs. (2) These figures represent specifically procured costs of the consultation, for example, producing consultation documents and organising consultation events.

Pension Credit: Overpayments

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Cardiff Central of 12 January 2009,  Official Report, column 41W, on pension credit: overpayments, how much was repaid through  (a) voluntary repayment,  (b) automatic deduction from benefit,  (c) county court judgement,  (d) the use of bailiffs,  (e) bankruptcy orders,  (f) repossession orders,  (g) private debt collection companies and  (h) another method of repayment in each month.

Kitty Ussher: The information requested in relation to the means of repayment is not available in all the categories requested.
	Action taken through the courts to recover overpayments of pension credit is limited as it is not our policy to take enforcement action through the courts where the customer is in receipt of a benefit or a pension.
	The only cases where such court action could arise is where recovery is sought from the estate of a deceased customer to recover an overpayment outstanding at death, or where an overpayment is identified after death following a check of probate records. Court action would only then be taken if it had not been possible to reach a voluntary arrangement.
	Likewise, our private sector partners are not generally used to seek recovery from customers of pension age.
	The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Pension credit overpayment recovery by method of payment: 2007-08 
			  £000 
			   Apr  May  Jun  July  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar 
			 Payments through banks(1) 1,614 1,764 1,673 1,651 1,733 1,899 2,488 1,918 1,666 1,820 1,838 1,661 
			 Deduction from benefit 522 514 520 585 521 490 580 498 571 509 517 494 
			 County Court 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 
			 Private Sector 0.4 0.9 0.6 0 0 0 0 (3)-2 0 0 0.1 0 
			 Other(2) 89 (3)-60 127 115 142 116 132 307 93 146 146 56 
		
	
	
		
			  2008-09( 4) 
			  £000 
			   Apr  May  Jun  Jul  Aug  Sep 
			 Payments through banks(1) 1,757 1,837 1,850 2,175 1,676 1,871 
			 Deduction from benefit 489 487 567 537 545 638 
			 County Court 2 0 0 0 0 0.1 
			 Private Sector 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Other(2) 186 68 129 174 85 196 
			 (1) Payment through banks includes cases where payment received via Direct debit, Standing order, Debit card, Transcash etc. (2) Other includes cash payments and offsets against arrears. (3) Negative figures represent totals following accounting adjustments. (4) 2008-09 data is indicative only.

Remploy: Pay

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been paid in bonuses to the  (a) senior management and  (b) directors of Remploy in each year since 2000.

Jonathan R Shaw: The bonus payments made are based on achievement of individual performance related targets. Future bonuses will be tied to critical success factors derived from the five year modernisation plan announced in November 2007. The increase in manager bonuses since 2005-06 reflects the significant growth of Remploy Employment Services, where the number of disabled people supported, including into work, has trebled over the last three years.
	The available information is detailed in the following table.
	
		
			  Bonuses paid to Remploy senior management 
			  £ 
			   Managers  Directors/Executives  Total 
			 2000-01 269,068 34,861 303,929 
			 2001-02 324,903 54,776 379,679 
			 2002-03 259,631 (1)— 259,631 
			 2003-04 523,616 (1)— 523,616 
			 2004-05 404,154 29,245 433,399 
			 2005-06 1,163,467 (1)— 1,163,467 
			 2006-07 1,156,030 82,000 1,238,030 
			 2007-08 1,656,501 110,600 1,767,101 
			 ( 1) Nil  Source:  Remploy

Workstep

Derek Conway: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of  (a) contractors for Workstep and  (b) specific disability charities in securing sponsoring employers and mentoring-assisted employment placements for disabled people;
	(2)  what steps he has taken to ensure that contractors under the Workstep programme provide equal treatment for people with different categories of disability.

Jonathan R Shaw: All Department for Work and Pensions contracts, including Workstep, are managed using a standard contract management operating model involving review of performance, delivery and quality of service to customers. This includes monthly monitoring of performance, formal provider performance reviews and assessment of quality of provision. In addition, external inspection and validation also ensures the quality and accuracy of Workstep providers.
	The Department for Work and Pensions assesses the effectiveness of all Workstep providers, including charitable organisations, by following the standard contract management processes. A performance improvement plan would be agreed with the provider if the terms of the contract were not being met.
	Workstep providers are required under the terms of Department for Work and Pensions contracts to cover all disabilities and health conditions and this is checked as part of the contract management arrangements. In addition, Workstep providers with a contract value over £50,000 are accredited by an external organisation on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions. These accreditation checks include compliance with diversity and equal opportunities policies in respect of Jobcentre Plus customers and providers' staff, including non-discrimination on grounds of gender, ethnicity, disability, religion or belief. This also includes compliance with the requirement to make 'reasonable adjustments' within the meaning of the Disability Discrimination Act.

Jobcentre Plus

Joan Humble: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Statement of 24 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 489-503, on the pre-Budget report, what recent estimate he has made of the funding available to Jobcentre Plus in 2009-10.

Angela Eagle: The pre-Budget report announced an additional £1.3 billion for the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP). This will ensure that the Government can continue to deliver effective support for the unemployed through Jobcentre Plus, and for those most at risk in the labour market. DWP will publish further details of planned Jobcentre Plus expenditure in May.

UK Economic Performance

Richard Spring: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions his Department has had with the International Monetary Fund on the UK's economic performance.

Stephen Timms: The IMF holds bilateral discussions with each of its member countries, usually every year as part of its country surveillance function, under Article IV of the IMF's Articles of Agreement. IMF staff last visited London in May 2008 and met with various institutions including HM Treasury to discuss issues relating to the economy. The Government of course continue to also work closely with the IMF and other international partners in responding to the financial crisis.

UK Economic Performance

Gregory Barker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions his Department has had with the International Monetary Fund on the UK's economic performance.

Ian Pearson: The IMF holds bilateral discussions with each of its member countries, usually every year as part of its country surveillance function, under Article IV of the IMF's Articles of Agreement. IMF staff last visited London in May 2008 and met with various institutions including HM Treasury to discuss issues relating to the economy. The Government of course continue to also work closely with the IMF and other international partners in responding to the financial crisis.

Financial Services: Crown Dependencies

Graham Brady: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the Prime Minister's oral statement of 23 March 2009,  Official Report, on Spring European Council, what assessment he has made of British  (a) Crown dependencies' and  (b) overseas territories' compliance with OECD standards on financial transparency and money laundering.

Ian Pearson: HM Treasury considers the standard of the money laundering systems in the Crown dependencies and Gibraltar to be equivalent to European Union standards, as embodied in the third money laundering directive. Discussions are under way with the other overseas territories with major financial services sectors to assess the standards that they have achieved.
	In addition, the independent review into British offshore financial centres by Michael Foot is looking at the immediate and long-term challenges facing British offshore financial centres in the current economic climate, including financial supervision and transparency.

High Speed Two

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff of his Department are members of High Speed Two Ltd. in each of the next five years.

Yvette Cooper: No Treasury staff are staff or board members of High Speed Two Ltd.

High Speed Two

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how regularly his Department receives  (a) information and  (b) updates from High Speed Two Ltd.

Yvette Cooper: High Speed Two Ltd. has been asked by the Department for Transport to produce a report at the end of 2009. It is not expected that an interim report would be produced before that date.

Members: Correspondence

Simon Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when a reply will be sent to the hon. Member for West Chelmsford's letter of 6 January 2009, PO Ref: 5/04009/2009, concerning his constituent, Mrs Rosemary Beenham, of Broomfield, Chelmsford.

Ian Pearson: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.

Private Finance Initiative

Dai Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 3 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 47-48WS, on Government infrastructure investment, what reduction in fees agreed with private sector companies for the delivery of Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts will arise from the decision that certain PFI schemes are to receive Government loans in lieu of debt finance.

Yvette Cooper: It is intended that the Government will lend to PFI projects on commercial terms, alongside other commercial lenders and/or the European Investment Bank.

Private Finance Initiative

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 3 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 47-48WS, on Government infrastructure investment, whether underspent and unallocated funds from one department may be used to fund another department's private finance initiative infrastructure projects.

Yvette Cooper: Funding for lending to those PFI projects that cannot raise sufficient debt finance on acceptable terms will be provided from across Government, including initially from unallocated funds and departmental underspends on previous projects. The exact funding requirements will be determined by market conditions. Where necessary, the Treasury will provide additional resources funded from additional borrowing. An update will be provided at the Budget.

Private Finance Initiative

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 3 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 47-48WS, on Government infrastructure investment, what his most recent estimate is of the amount of underspent and unallocated funds for each department available to provide additional finance for public infrastructure projects.

Yvette Cooper: Government Departments have set aside funding for a number of projects. An update will be provided at the Budget.

Private Finance Initiative

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 3 March 2009,  Official Report, column 47WS, on Government infrastructure investment, whether the proposals will require state aid clearance at EU level.

Yvette Cooper: Article 87(1) of the EC treaty sets out criteria for a state aid to be present.
	The Government will lend to private finance initiative (PFI) projects on commercial terms, alongside other commercial lenders and/or the European Investment Bank.

VAT

Theresa May: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 263W, on VAT, what the other groups are which account for the remaining 15 per cent. of savings to taxpayers.

Stephen Timms: The full breakdown relating to the answer of 10 March 2009,  Official Report, column 263W can be obtained from published data on the gross VAT Theoretical Tax Liability in table B.1 of Measuring Indirect Tax Gaps 2008
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/pbr2008/mtg-2450.pdf
	Shares of the components can be derived from comparing the components to the gross VAT Theoretical Tax Liability in that table.

Departmental Recruitment

Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to the answer of 25 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 832-3W, on departmental recruitment, what estimate he has made of the annual salary cost of the new  (a) permanent,  (b) temporary and  (c) agency staff recruited in each year since 2005-06.

Patrick McFadden: Permanent new recruits are staff employed by the Department on a permanent civil service contract. Temporary new recruits are staff recruited on a short term or fixed term civil service contract.
	The annual salary cost of new permanent and temporary staff could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Agency staff are new recruits that have joined the Department but are not on a civil service contract and are employed by a third party. The arrangements for employing agency staff in the Department are delegated locally to line management units. To provide information on their salary costs could therefore be done only at disproportionate cost.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when the Minister for Trade plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 25 November 2008 on the export of products to India.

Patrick McFadden: holding answer 23 February 2009
	I responded to the hon. Member on 19 February 2009.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he expects to answer question 249140, on answers to parliamentary questions, tabled on 14 January 2009.

Patrick McFadden: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 March 2009,  Official Report, column reference 525W.

Crime

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been arrested on suspicion of the offence of conspiracy to cause misconduct in a public office in each of the last three years.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 16 December 2008
	 I refer the hon. Member to the reply of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Justice (Mr. Straw), to the hon. and learned Member for Beaconsfield (Mr. Grieve) on 15 December 2008,  Official Report, column 478W.

Damian Green

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to her contribution on 4 December 2008,  Official Report, column 151, consequent upon the Point of Order raised by the hon. Member for Ashford, if she will place in the Library a copy of the statement made by the Metropolitan Police to which she referred; what discussions she has had with the Metropolitan Police on the description of the alleged offence for which the hon. Member for Ashford was arrested; what explanation the Metropolitan Police have offered for the discrepancy between her statement at column 135 and the contents of the warrant issued for the arrest of the hon. Member for Ashford; what communications she has made to the hon. Member for Ashford since her statement; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: h olding answer 10 December 2008
	 : I have placed in the Library a copy of the statement made by the Metropolitan police from which my right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary, was quoting when she referred to the alleged offence for which the hon. Member for Ashford (Damian Green) was arrested. In response to the hon. Member for Ashford's suggestion that my right hon. Friend's statement contained a factual inaccuracy my right hon. Friend sought clarification from Bob Quick, Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan police. He confirmed that the press lines from which she quoted were correct and that it is not unusual for a person to be given the abridged form of an offence as an explanation for the grounds of arrest. My right hon. Friend shared this explanation with the hon. Member for Ashford and placed a copy of Assistant Commissioner Quick's letter in the House Library.

Damian Green

William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans she has to make the Metropolitan police's report on its investigation regarding the hon. Member for Ashford (Damian Green) available to all hon. Members.

Vernon Coaker: The publication of the report is a matter for the Metropolitan police.

Departmental Data Protection

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what scanning for vulnerabilities her Department conducts of each of its IT devices; what method is used for IT device scans; and how many vulnerabilities have been detected as a result of such scans in the last 12 months.

Phil Woolas: The Security Policy Framework, the Data Handling Report and the National Information Assurance Strategy produced by the Cabinet Office provide a strategic framework for protecting information that government handles and put in place a set of mandatory measures which Departments must adhere to.
	It is not in the interest of the security of the Department, or that of the public, to disclose detailed information pertaining to electronic breaches of security of Department's IT systems. Disclosing such information would enable criminals and those who would attempt to cause disruptive threats to the department to deduce how to conduct attacks and therefore potentially enhance their capability to carry out such attacks.

Departmental Disclosure of Information

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will publish a list of the systematic leaks from her Department referred to in her statement of 4 December 2008,  Official Report, columns 134-36, as having led to her to approve referring the matter to the police; and whether any of the leaks listed concerned issues of national security.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 9 December 2008
	 I refer the hon. Member to the statement my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary made on 4 December 2008,  Official Report, column 134WS.

Departmental Public Consultation

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many public consultations her Department has conducted in the last 12 months; how long each consultation was open for; how many responses were received in each case; and what the cost of conducting each consultation was.

Phil Woolas: Public consultation exercises run by the Home Office follow the Government's Code of Practice on Consultation which sets out the basic principles for conducting effective formal written consultations. As reported in the Home Office Departmental Report 2008 (refer to web address), during 2007-08 we published 17 public consultations. Out of these, 15 met the minimum 12 week consultation period and two lasted longer than 12 weeks. The departmental report for 2009 which will be published in the near future will set out the position for consultations published in 2008-09. The costs of running consultation exercises are met from within existing departmental resources. It would not be possible retrospectively to separate out the costs which could be attributed to a consultation from the normal day-to-day departmental business. All public consultation documents that have been initiated by the Home Office and related response documents, which normally include details of the number of responses received, can be found at the following websites listed:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/about-us/haveyoursay/
	http://www.bia.homeoffice.gov.uk/aboutus/consultations/
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/ho-annual- report-08/

Departmental Temporary Employment

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her Department's policy is on the renewal of the contracts of  (a) temporary and  (b) agency staff.

Phil Woolas: Temporary and agency workers should only be used as a short-term solution to fill a particular need that cannot be met by permanent staff. Unless there are exceptional circumstances supported by a compelling business case, all temporary and agency staff should have their booking ended by the time they have worked for the Department for 11 months, or have accrued 11 months continuous service within the Home Office and other Government Departments. The policy to restrict to 11 months has been promulgated by the Cabinet Office and is now departmental policy.

Deportation

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many scheduled deportations were cancelled within  (a) one month and  (b) one week, of the deportation date in 2008.

Phil Woolas: The system used by the UK Border Agency to record details of removal directions (RDs) records the date and reason for any cancellation. However, it is not possible to cross-reference the date for which the RDs were set with the date they were subsequently cancelled. The information requested could only be obtained by the detailed examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost

Domestic Violence

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many  (a) women and  (b) teenage girls have reported being victims of domestic violence in (i) England and Wales, (ii) the North East, (iii) Tees Valley district and (iv) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in the last 12 months;
	(2)  how many  (a) men and  (b) teenage boys have reported being victims of domestic violence in (i) England and Wales, (ii) the North East, (iii) Tees Valley district and (iv) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in the last 12 months.

Alan Campbell: The information requested is not centrally available except that relating to adults aged 16 and over resident in England and Wales.
	From the information collected centrally on police recorded crime, it is not possible to identify the number of cases of domestic violence reported to the police. Such offences are not specifically defined by law and details of the individual circumstances of offences are not collected.
	However, the British Crime Survey (BCS), which includes crimes not reported to the police, routinely provides information on the number of incidents of domestic violence in England and Wales. Latest estimates from the 2007-08 BCS, show that 288,000 incidents of domestic violence were committed against women and 52,000 incidents against men in England and Wales. The BCS sample is insufficient to provide robust estimates broken down by age or sex at regional or lower geographical levels. It should also be noted that the BCS estimates relate to adults aged 16 years and over and it is not possible to provide separate estimates for teenagers.
	It should be noted that BCS estimates are known to understate the true extent of domestic violence due to the fact that some respondents may be unwilling to reveal such experiences in the context of a face-to-face interview in their own homes.

Entry Clearances: Families

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications were  (a) received and  (b) granted for family visit visas in each of the last six years.

Phil Woolas: The information requested is given in the following table. Reliable data for years prior to 2004 is not available from our global visa database.
	
		
			   Applications  Issued 
			 2004 354,413 248,268 
			 2005 457,571 331,143 
			 2006 502,197 376,415 
			 2007 473,553 354,083 
			 2008 414,159 312,524 
			  Notes: 1. Data is by calendar year. 2. This information is unpublished and should be treated as provisional.  Source: Central Reference System

House of Commons: Right of Search

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when an application was made to a magistrate for a search warrant to search the office of the hon. Member for Ashford within the parliamentary precincts; what response was made to that application; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: This is a matter for the Metropolitan police and the House authorities, have placed in the Library of the House a letter from the Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan police, giving his account of the circumstances in which the police entered the House of Commons.

House of Commons: Right of Search

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the letter to her of 3 December 2008 from Assistant Commissioner Robert Quick, from whom the police obtained the information which led them to understand that the Serjeant at Arms had obtained legal advice in the period between their meetings of 26 and 27 November with her.

Vernon Coaker: This is a matter for the Metropolitan police.

House of Commons: Right of Search

William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will ask the Acting Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service to explain the reasons which underlay the decision to search the Parliamentary office of the hon. Member for Ashford on a day on which the House was prorogued.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 9 December 2008
	 This is a matter for the Metropolitan police.

House of Commons: Right of Search

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what meetings she has attended with Mr. Speaker on the arrest of the hon. Member for Ashford (Damian Green) and the search of his office; what was discussed; if she will place in the Library a copy of records held by her Department of such meetings; and whether she has received a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 from the hon. Member for North Essex for this information.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 26 January 2009
	No such meetings occurred. The hon. Member's request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 has been received and he will receive a reply shortly.

Human Trafficking

Dominic Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department plans to publish a report on the operation and outcomes of Operation Pentameter II.

Alan Campbell: A report on Operation Pentameter 2 is being prepared by Gloucestershire constabulary which led the operation. A summary version of this report, including results, will be made available in the spring.

Members: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall North of 10 February regarding a constituent, ref: M2717/9.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 20 March 2009
	Lin Homer, Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency, replied on 20 March 2009.

Vetting

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what the average estimated cost for the Criminal Records Bureau to complete a single check was in the latest period for which information is available;
	(2)  what target her Department has set for the length of time taken to process a Criminal Records Bureau disclosure application; and how long on average it took to process such an application in the most recent period for which figures are available;
	(3)  how many applications for Criminal Records Bureau checks were received in each year since 2002; and how many such checks were completed in each such year.

Shahid Malik: The total number of Disclosures received and issued by the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) is contained in the following table.
	
		
			   Disclosures received  Disclosures issued 
			 2002-03 1,651,134 1,437,094 
			 2003-04 2,358,627 2,284,688 
			 2004-05 2,532,451 2,430,937 
			 2005-06 2,860,296 2,770,265 
			 2006-07 3,252,640 3,277,957 
			 2007-08 3,408,595 3,323,251 
			 2008 (to January 2009) 3,262,826 3,263,000 
		
	
	In running the Disclosure Service, the CRB operates to a set of Published Service Standards (PSS) which include issuing 90 per cent. of Enhanced Disclosures in four weeks and 90 per cent. of Standard Disclosures in 10 days.
	Data concerning the average time taken to complete a Disclosure are not collated by the CRB. However, the Bureau has completed 88.2 per cent. of Enhanced Disclosures within 28 days in 2008-09 and at a unit cost of £26.18.

Courts: Hertfordshire

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost of providing the Crown Court Service in Hertfordshire was in each year since 1997.

Bridget Prentice: Prior to the formation of Her Majesty's Courts Service on 1 April 2005 the Crown court was administered by the Court Service and the detailed financial information relating to prior years is not held by HMCS. Obtaining the specific information relating to Hertfordshire would be at a disproportionate cost as this would require a manual investigation of court records.
	HMCS accounting records reflect HMCS management structure. This does not necessarily reflect HMCS geographical or court structure. As a consequence it is not possible to identify accurately all costs attributable to specific courts.
	The costs of providing Crown court services in Hertfordshire for each of the last three years was:
	
		
			  Financial year  £ million 
			 2005-06 2.3 
			 2006-07 2.5 
			 2007-08 2.7 
		
	
	Costs included are the direct costs and cover salaries, staff expenses, accommodation expenses and depreciation.
	The costs of circuit and High Court judges are not held at court level and are not included. The costs also exclude area and central overhead costs as these are not allocated to court level.

Departmental Official Hospitality

Robert Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department spent on  (a) alcohol and  (b) food in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: All expenditure on food and drink is in line with the internal Finance Policy Manual and the Gifts and Hospitality Policy, which set out mandatory guidance for all staff regarding the use of public funds. Both are consistent with the Treasury guidance on Managing Public Money, and the Treasury handbook on Propriety and Regularity.
	The Ministry's policy on the provision of alcohol prohibits the supply of any alcohol paid from departmental funds for in-house hospitality. For external hospitality the guidance states:
	"When providing hospitality to external parties, then discretion can be exercised, e.g. a modest amount of alcohol with a meal".
	There is no departmental requirement to separately monitor expenditure on alcohol and food. No separate account codes for these expenditure types are maintained, and to extract this information could be completed only at disproportionate cost.
	Since April 2007 a record has been kept of the cost of receptions and formal dinners hosted by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice. This record indicates that in the financial year 2007-08 spending in these matters was £42.452. The total spending to January 2009 in 2008-09 financial year is £68.331. The majority of this spending is for the Ford Chancellor's Breakfast, hosted for the judiciary and foreign dignitaries on the occasion of the Opening of the legal Year.

Lancaster Farms Young Offender Institution

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what additional funding he has allocated for improvements to Young Offender Institute Lancaster Farms following the transfer of its juvenile population.

David Hanson: £270,000 was allocated to fund additional fencing. The additional fencing has provided exercise yards and has enabled less restrictions upon the allocation of some young adults to purposeful activity working within farms and gardens.

Land Registry

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many internal grievances in the Land Registry led to an employment tribunal in each of the last two financial years; what the reasons for each such case were in each year; how many such cases were settled before a tribunal hearing in each such year; what the cost of out-of-court settlements was in each year; what the cost of fees for  (a) solicitors and  (b) barristers for cases taken to tribunal was in each year; and what the cost of awards made against the Land Registry at tribunal was in each year.

Michael Wills: 11 grievances led to an employment tribunal in 2007-08. 14 grievances led to an employment tribunal in 2008-09. The reason for each case in each year is as detailed in the following tables:
	
		
			  2007-08 
			  Claim  Reason for claim 
			 Claim 1 Disability discrimination 
			 Claim 2 Unfair dismissal and age discrimination 
			 Claim 3 Unfair dismissal and age discrimination 
			 Claim 4 Discrimination on basis of Trade Union membership 
			 Claim 5 Discrimination on basis of Trade Union membership 
			 Claim 6 Unfair dismissal and age discrimination 
			 Claim 7 Discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation 
			 Claim 8 Unfair dismissal and age and sex discrimination 
			 Claim 9 Unfair dismissal (fixed term employee) 
			 Claim 10 Unfair dismissal and age and sex discrimination 
			 Claim 11 Unfair dismissal and disability discrimination 
		
	
	
		
			  2008-09 
			  Claim  Reason for claim 
			 Claim 1 Disability discrimination 
			 Claim 2 Unfair dismissal (fixed term employee) and disability discrimination 
			 Claim 3 Unfair dismissal (fixed term employee) 
			 Claim 4 Unfair dismissal (fixed term employee) 
			 Claim 5 Unfair dismissal (fixed term employee) 
			 Claim 6 Unfair dismissal (fixed term employee) 
			 Claim 7 Unfair dismissal (casual employee) 
			 Claim 8 Unpaid leave entitlement on termination of employment 
			 Claim 9 Unauthorised deduction from wages 
			 Claim 10 Constructive dismissal and disability discrimination 
			 Claim 11 Unfair dismissal and age and sex discrimination 
			 Claim 12 Annual leave accrual during additional maternity leave 
			 Claim 13 Disability discrimination 
			 Claim 14 Unfair dismissal and age and sex discrimination 
		
	
	One case was settled before hearing at tribunal in 2007-08. No cases were settled before hearing at tribunal and four were withdrawn by the complainant in 2008-09.
	The cost of out of court settlement in 2007-08 was £1,400. There were no out of court settlements in 2008-09.
	The cost of solicitors fees in 2007-08 was £17,673.78. The cost of barristers fees in that year was £3,073.40.
	The cost of solicitors fees in 2008-09 was £76,902.98. The cost of barristers fees in that year was £29,934.70.
	There were no costs awarded against Land Registry in 2007-08. The costs awarded against Land Registry in 2008-09 were £1,250.
	All 2008-09 figures are as of 24 March 2009.

Magistrates Courts: Hertfordshire

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much the provision of the magistrates' court service in  (a) Hemel Hempstead and  (b) Hertfordshire cost in each year since 1997.

Bridget Prentice: Prior to the formation of Her Majesty's Courts Service on 1 April 2005 magistrates courts were the responsibility of individual magistrates courts committees. Consequently, HMCS does not hold records relating to magistrates courts prior to 1 April 2005.
	The directly attributable costs of providing magistrates court services at Hemel Hempstead for each of the last three years was:
	
		
			  Financial year  £ million 
			 2005-06 0.23 
			 2006-07 0.34 
			 2007-08 0.27 
		
	
	Costs included are the direct costs for the magistrates courts at Hemel Hempstead including: staff expenses, accommodation expenses, lay magistrates allowances and depreciation.
	Area, regional and central overhead costs are not allocated to court level. Consequently, the costs above do not include cost allocations relating to area or central management.
	The costs of district judges are not recorded at court level and have not been included.
	The directly attributable costs of providing magistrates court services in Hertfordshire for each of the last three years was:
	
		
			  Financial Year  £ million 
			 2005-06 4.4 
			 2006-07 4.9 
			 2007-08 4.5 
		
	
	Costs included are the direct costs for the magistrates courts in Hertfordshire including: staff expenses, accommodation expenses, lay magistrates allowances and depreciation.
	Area, regional and central overhead costs are not allocated to court level. Consequently, the costs above do not include cost allocations relating to area or central management.
	The costs of district judges are not recorded at court level and have not been included.

Victim Support Schemes: Finance

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was in the Victims Fund in each of the last five years; and what its sources of income are.

Maria Eagle: The following table details the level of funding invested in the Victims Fund over the last five years.
	The sources of income include asset recovery funds, central government funds and the Victims Surcharge Fund.
	
		
			   £ million (Resources) 
			 2004-05 1 
			 2005-06 3 
			 2006-07 1.25 
			 2007-08 1.75 
			 2008-09 1.75

Departmental Pay

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has allocated for staff bonuses in 2008-09.

Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development's (DFID) reward arrangements do not allow for the payment of any performance related awards in the 2008-09 financial year to staff below the senior civil service (SCS).
	DFID's total SCS consolidated pay bill was £7.45 million at 31 March 2008. In line with the SSRB's recommendations, an additional 8.6 per cent. (£0.64 million) was allocated for non-consolidated performance awards for payment in the current financial year. The median award made was £6,350.
	Awards are intended to reward delivery of personal business objectives during the reporting year or other short-term personal contributions to wider organisational objectives. In considering SCS members for an award, line managers are asked to take into account:
	performance against agreed priority business objectives or targets;
	total delivery record over the year;
	relative stretch (ie the challenge of the job compared to that of others); and
	response to unforeseen events that affected the performance agreement.
	Awards are funded within existing pay bill controls, have to be re-earned each year against the pre-determined criteria above and, as such, do not add to future pay bill costs.
	The annual size of the non-consolidated performance pay pot is based on recommendations by the independent Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB).

Departmental Recruitment

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development with reference to the answer of 29 October 2008,  Official Report, column 1162W, on departmental recruitment, how many additional  (a) generalist and  (b) technical civil servants were recruited between mid-October 2008 and the end of 2008; and how many serving generalist civil servants recruited to the fast stream between 2003 and 2008 were recruited (i) through the in-service stream and (ii) from other Government Departments.

Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development (DFID) recruited 69 civil servants between mid-October 2008 and the end of 2008. 35 of these were specialist or technical staff and 34 were generalist staff.
	Between 2003 and 2008, DFID recruited eight people on to the fast stream through the in-service nomination scheme and 12 on to the fast stream from positions in other Government Departments.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Mohammad Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support his Department is providing for non-governmental organisations and charities working to alleviate the humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Douglas Alexander: The Department for International Development (DFID) has pledged £46.8 million to help meet immediate needs and support recovery efforts in Gaza.
	To date, £16.3 million of this has been committed as follows:
	
		
			  Organisation  Detail  Commitment (£) 
			 UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) Gaza Flash Appeal Food and cash assistance to those in need and shelter assistance for the displaced. Fuel to maintain essential public services. 4,000,000 
			 UN's Humanitarian Emergency Response Fund This will enable the UN's local Humanitarian Co-ordinator to quickly allocate funds to emerging priorities, making them available to NGOs and other organisations with staff on the ground, to meet immediate humanitarian needs. 1,000,000 
			 International Committee for the Red Cross Relief Assistance (food and non-food items); health and protection activities. 4,000,000 
			 Mines Advisory Group Assess, survey and clear the danger of unexploded ordnance in Gaza. 197,973 
			 United Nations Contribution and airlift of three armoured cars to facilitate safe assessments and relief delivery by UN agencies as quickly as possible. 500,000 
			 Oxfam Immediate water and sanitation needs of vulnerable communities in Gaza. 600,000 
			 Mercy Corps Emergency shelter, non-food items and psycho-social support to conflict affected children, youth and families in Gaza. 913,279 
			 Handicap International Emergency medical response for the extremely vulnerable including people with injuries, people with disabilities and the elderly. 421,943 
			 Action Against Hunger Improve access to water through emergency rehabilitation of water infrastructure and raise awareness of good hygiene practice. 400,000 
			 Welfare Association Expand comprehensive community-based health rehabilitation services for disabled people and their families in areas of high need. 300,000 
			 OCHA Support for an information officer to work in OCHA for three months. 70,000 
			 Islamic Relief Non-food items, psycho-social support, house repair, emergency school rehabilitation. 660,618 
			 UNICEF For information management and co-ordination of emergency water and sanitation sector response. 340,000 
			 World Food Programme Provision of food aid and co-ordination of relief items brought into Gaza by the UN and NGOs. 2,500,000 
			 UN Mines Action Services For the clearance and disposal of unexploded ordnance to enable reconstruction and redevelopment to take place. 443,000 
			 Total committed to date  16,346,813 
		
	
	This table is available on the DFID website and is updated when further allocations are made.

Palestinians: Overseas Aid

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1656W, on Palestinians: overseas aid, what measures are in place to ensure that his Department's humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza will not be channelled to Hamas.

Douglas Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answers given to my hon. Friend the Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) and my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool, North and Fleetwood (Mrs. Humble) on 25 March 2009,  Official Report, column 291.

Uganda

Lee Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department paid in per diem expenses to persons in Uganda who were not employees of the Department to attend  (a) meetings,  (b) workshops,  (c) conferences and  (d) other events in 2007-08.

Ivan Lewis: In Uganda, the Department for International Development (DFID) does not directly pay per diem to non-DFID employees. Included in our programmes and budgets is provision for training events, workshops and other events which are managed by our implementing partners.

Cambridge University: Admissions

Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number of secondary schools in England which have not had a student accepted for a place at  (a) Cambridge University and  (b) Oxford university in the last 30 years.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	Detailed UCAS data on applications via secondary schools are only available from 2001. The figures cover schools classed by UCAS as comprehensive, grammar, other maintained and other secondary schools in England. Only centres who have had pupils apply to university via the UCAS system have been included. Figures include centres who have had applicants to Oxford and Cambridge, and those who have had no applications to these two universities.
	There were 1,919 centres whose applicants applied through the UCAS system, which did not have any applicants accepted onto courses at Cambridge in any year between 2001 and 2008 inclusive. In the same time period, 1,990 centres whose applicants applied through the UCAS system did not have any applicants accepted onto courses at Oxford in any of the years.
	 Source:
	UCAS

Children: Protection

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what the period is of Sir Roger Singleton's appointment as chief adviser on the safety of children; what remit he has been given; and what remuneration he will receive in this capacity;
	(2)  whether the chief adviser on the safety of children will be permitted to read serious case review reports;
	(3)  who will appoint the next chief adviser on the safety of children.

Beverley Hughes: holding answer 19 March 2009
	Sir Roger Singleton's remit as Chief Adviser on the Safety of Children was set out in a letter from the Secretary of State to Sir Roger on 12 March. This letter was placed in the House Libraries on the same day. The details of his activities, including in relation to Serious Case Reviews, will be developed over the next few months. The period of Sir Roger's appointment to this role is three years. Decisions about any future appointments of a Chief Adviser on the Safety of Children will be made in due course.
	Sir Roger will be carrying out this role on a part-time basis and will be remunerated at a rate consistent with that normally provided for public advisory roles.

Social Workers

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many people have graduated from the new social worker degree since its creation;
	(2)  how many people have started the new social worker degree since its creation;
	(3)  how many graduates of the new social worker degree remain in post as social workers;
	(4)  how many graduates of the new social worker degree have become social workers since its creation.

Beverley Hughes: The General Social Care Council registers both social work students and practising social workers.
	As of 16 March 2009, the General Social Care Council has recorded 28,120 people as having enrolled on the social work degree since its creation in 2003 and 10,353 people as having passed the social work degree.
	The number of social work degree graduates now practising as social workers is not recorded by the General Social Care Council; however, as of 16 March 2009 9,007 qualified social workers who have graduated from the social work degree are registered with them.

Special Educational Needs

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of mainstream schools in each local authority area had more than  (a) five per cent. and  (b) 10 per cent. of pupils with statements of special educational need in 2008.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information, for those local authorities with schools with more than 5 per cent. and more than 10 per cent. of pupils with statements, is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Nursery, primary and secondary schools( 1, 2) : number and percentage of schools with pupils with special ed ucational needs with statements( 3) , position in January 2008, by local authority area 
			LA maintained nursery and primary schools and state-funded secondary schools with more than 5 per cent .  of pupils with statements  LA maintained nursery and primary schools and state-funded secondary schools with more than 10 per cent .  of pupils with statements 
			  Local authority number  Local authority name  Number of schools  Percentage of schools  Number of schools  Percentage of schools 
			 202 Camden 3 5.9 0 0.0 
			 203 Greenwich 7 8.4 2 2.4 
			 204 Hackney 5 7.6 0 0.0 
			 205 Hammersmith and Fulham 3 6.3 1 2.1 
			 206 Islington 2 3.5 2 3.5 
			 207 Kensington and Chelsea 3 8.8 0 0.0 
			 208 Lambeth 4 5.2 0 0.0 
			 209 Lewisham 1 1.2 0 0.0 
			 210 Southwark 5 5.5 1 1.1 
			 211 Tower Hamlets 6 6.7 1 1.1 
			 212 Wandsworth 3 4.3 2 2.9 
			 213 Westminster 2 3.7 1 1.9 
			 301 Barking and Dagenham 1 1.7 0 0.0 
			 302 Barnet 5 4.5 0 0.0 
			 303 Bexley 4 5.3 0 0.0 
			 305 Bromley 14 15.1 2 2.2 
			 306 Croydon 4 3.4 0 0.0 
			 307 Ealing 3 3.7 0 0.0 
			 308 Enfield 1 1.2 0 0.0 
			 310 Harrow 1 1.6 0 0.0 
			 311 Havering 2 2.4 1 1.2 
			 312 Hillingdon 1 1.2 0 0.0 
			 313 Hounslow 2 2.7 1 1.4 
			 314 Kingston upon Thames 1 2.2 0 0.0 
			 315 Merton 2 3.9 0 0.0 
			 316 Newham 1 1.1 0 0.0 
			 317 Redbridge 1 1.4 0 0.0 
			 318 Richmond upon Thames 3 6.0 0 0.0 
			 319 Sutton 4 7.0 2 3.5 
			 330 Birmingham 19 4.8 3 0.8 
			 331 Coventry 1 1.0 0 0.0 
			 332 Dudley 2 2.0 0 0.0 
			 333 Sandwell 1 0.9 0 0.0 
			 334 Solihull 1 1.3 0 0.0 
			 335 Walsall 1 0.9 0 0.0 
			 336 Wolverhampton 4 3.9 1 1.0 
			 341 Liverpool 4 2.4 3 1.8 
			 343 Sefton 5 4.9 1 1.0 
			 344 Wirral 7 5.8 1 0.8 
			 350 Bolton 1 0.8 0 0.0 
			 351 Bury 6 7.7 0 0.0 
			 352 Manchester 1 0.6 0 0.0 
			 353 Oldham 1 0.9 0 0.0 
			 354 Rochdale 3 3.4 0 0.0 
			 355 Salford 2 2.1 1 1.0 
			 356 Stockport 7 6.1 1 0.9 
			 357 Tameside 1 1.1 0 0.0 
			 358 Trafford 4 4.5 2 2.2 
			 359 Wigan 1 0.8 0 0.0 
			 370 Barnsley 1 1.1 0 0.0 
			 371 Doncaster 1 0.8 0 0.0 
			 372 Rotherham 2 1.7 1 0.8 
			 373 Sheffield 6 3.6 1 0.6 
			 380 Bradford 2 1.0 0 0.0 
			 382 Kirklees 10 5.4 2 1.1 
			 383 Leeds 3 1.2 0 0.0 
			 384 Wakefield 5 3.5 0 0.0 
			 390 Gateshead 2 2.5 0 0.0 
			 392 North Tyneside 4 5.6 0 0.0 
			 393 South Tyneside 3 4.7 2 3.1 
			 394 Sunderland 3 2.8 0 0.0 
			 800 Bath and North East Somerset 6 8.0 0 0.0 
			 801 Bristol, City of 5 3.5 3 2.1 
			 802 North Somerset 2 2.7 0 0.0 
			 803 South Gloucestershire 5 4.5 0 0.0 
			 806 Middlesbrough 6 11.8 2 3.9 
			 807 Redcar and Cleveland 3 5.4 0 0.0 
			 808 Stockton-on-Tees 2 2.7 0 0.0 
			 810 Kingston Upon Hull, City of 5 5.7 1 1.1 
			 811 East Riding of Yorkshire 1 0.7 0 0.0 
			 812 North East Lincolnshire 5 7.2 0 0.0 
			 813 North Lincolnshire 6 7.6 0 0.0 
			 815 North Yorkshire 7 1.9 0 0.0 
			 820 Bedfordshire 1 0.5 0 0.0 
			 821 Luton 2 2.8 0 0.0 
			 825 Buckinghamshire 10 4.6 2 0.9 
			 826 Milton Keynes 5 4.8 0 0.0 
			 830 Derbyshire 14 3.4 0 0.0 
			 831 Derby 4 4.0 2 2.0 
			 835 Dorset 4 2.4 0 0.0 
			 840 Durham 6 2.1 1 0.4 
			 841 Darlington 1 2.6 0 0.0 
			 845 East Sussex 4 2.2 0 0.0 
			 846 Brighton and Hove 3 4.5 0 0.0 
			 850 Hampshire 14 2.8 1 0.2 
			 851 Portsmouth 1 1.6 1 1.6 
			 855 Leicestershire 14 5.0 1 0.4 
			 856 Leicester 2 2.0 1 1.0 
			 857 Rutland 1 5.0 0 0.0 
			 860 Staffordshire 3 0.8 0 0.0 
			 861 Stoke-on-Trent 2 2.1 0 0.0 
			 865 Wiltshire 13 5.6 2 0.9 
			 866 Swindon 1 1.4 0 0.0 
			 867 Bracknell Forest 1 2.8 0 0.0 
			 868 Windsor and Maidenhead 3 4.8 0 0.0 
			 869 West Berkshire 4 5.1 0 0.0 
			 870 Reading 3 6.1 0 0.0 
			 871 Slough 2 4.5 0 0.0 
			 872 Wokingham 6 9.8 2 3.3 
			 873 Cambridgeshire 9 3.8 0 0.0 
			 874 Peterborough 3 4.3 1 1.4 
			 875 Cheshire 30 9.7 4 1.3 
			 876 Halton 5 7.8 1 1.6 
			 877 Warrington 7 8.4 2 2.4 
			 878 Devon 28 7.9 2 0.6 
			 879 Plymouth 4 4.3 0 0.0 
			 880 Torbay 5 12.5 1 2.5 
			 881 Essex 17 3.1 7 1.3 
			 883 Thurrock 2 3.8 0 0.0 
			 884 Herefordshire 2 2.1 1 1.1 
			 885 Worcestershire 5 2.2 2 0.9 
			 886 Kent 19 3.4 4 0.7 
			 887 Medway 6 5.8 4 3.8 
			 888 Lancashire 37 6.2 5 0.8 
			 889 Blackburn with Darwen 2 2.7 0 0.0 
			 892 Nottingham 1 0.9 0 0.0 
			 893 Shropshire 7 4.3 2 1.2 
			 894 Telford and Wrekin 2 2.8 0 0.0 
			 908 Cornwall 16 5.9 1 0.4 
			 909 Cumbria 23 7.0 3 0.9 
			 916 Gloucestershire 10 3.4 1 0.3 
			 919 Hertfordshire 6 1.2 2 0.4 
			 925 Lincolnshire 37 10.5 2 0.6 
			 926 Norfolk 38 9.0 3 0.7 
			 928 Northamptonshire 13 4.1 1 0.3 
			 929 Northumberland 14 7.1 2 1.0 
			 931 Oxfordshire 2 0.7 0 0.0 
			 933 Somerset 2 0.8 0 0.0 
			 935 Suffolk 20 6.0 2 0.6 
			 936 Surrey 29 7.9 8 2.2 
			 937 Warwickshire 5 2.1 0 0.0 
			 938 West Sussex 7 2.5 1 0.4 
			   
			  England 798 3.8 116 0.6 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Includes City Technology Colleges and Academies. (3) Excludes dually registered pupils.

Young People: Carers

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children under the age of 16 years have been identified as young carers in  (a) the London Borough of Bexley,  (b) London and  (c) England in the latest period for which figures are available.

Beverley Hughes: The 2001 census, which is the only source of nationally comparable data on the number of carers of all ages, indicated that the number of young carers aged under 16 was 400 in the London borough of Bexley, 14,000 in London and 90,000 in England as a whole.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many women in Scotland aged  (a) 18,  (b) 17,  (c) 16,  (d) 15,  (e) 14,  (f) 13 and  (g) 12 years who had had an abortion in (i) 2006 and (ii) 2007 had had (A) one, (B) two, (C) three, (D) four and (E) five or more previous abortions;
	(2)  how many abortions were performed in Scotland under the Abortion Act 1967 as amended by section 37 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 where the unborn child was suffering from cleft  (a) palate and  (b) lip, broken down by (i) grounds for abortion, (ii) length of gestation and (iii) health authority in each of the last 15 years;
	(3)  how many abortions were performed in Scotland in the latest year for which figures are available, broken down by type of procedure;
	(4)  how many abortions have been performed in Scotland under the provisions of the Abortion Act 1967 in the last 30 years; and how many and what percentage of these abortions were performed in emergency to save the life of the mother;
	(5)  how many women in Scotland were referred by National Health Service GPs to the British Pregnancy Advisory Service for an abortion in each of the last four years for which figures are available, broken down by  (a) age of the woman,  (b) gestation of the pregnancy and  (c) region of residence;
	(6)  how many early medical abortions were performed in Scotland by the British Pregnancy Advisory Service at the request of the National Health Service in each of the last four years, broken down by  (a) age of the woman,  (b) gestation of the pregnancy and  (c) region of residence;
	(7)  how many girls in Scotland, aged  (a) 12,  (b) 13,  (c) 14 and  (d) 15 years of age had (i) one, (ii) two, (iii) three and (iv) four or more abortions in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: Data on abortions performed in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government.

Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the next edition of the Abortion Statistics will be published; and what the reasons are for the time taken to publish it.

Dawn Primarolo: The Statistical Bulletin, "Abortion Statistics, England and Wales 2008" will be published in May 2009. Abortion statistics are published annually.

Abortion: Young People

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of recorded under 18 year-old conceptions were followed by  (a) first abortions and  (b) repeat abortions in (i) England in each year since 1997 and (ii) each primary care trust area in the last 12 months.

Dawn Primarolo: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available has been placed in the Library.

Animal Experiments: EU Law

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has made an assessment of the potential effects of the proposed revisions to the EU Animals in Research Directive on medical research activity in England; what proposals he has made to the European Commission on the matter; and if he will make a statement.

Shahid Malik: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government welcome the publication of the European Commission's proposal for a revised directive. We support the Commission's aim to harmonise the regulation of animal experimentation across the European Union. We also support measures to promote high welfare standards for laboratory animals and to promote the development and use of alternatives. At the same time we believe it is vital that regulation properly balances the protection of animals and the legitimate needs of science and industry while maintaining public confidence that animals are not allowed to suffer unnecessarily.
	We are in the process of assessing the detailed, technical provisions of the draft directive and will shortly launch a public consultation to assist in developing the Government's negotiating position. Our key priority in negotiating the revised directive will be to develop practical, proportionate and enforceable legislation that makes proper provision for the welfare of laboratory animals, facilitates their responsible use, and can adapt to further technical progress.

Bone Marrow Disorders: Donors

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the ACLT on the availability of bone marrow for transplants; what his policy is on encouraging people to offer to be bone marrow transplant donors; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health met with the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust on 4 February 2009. The meeting focused on the work of the charity and their role in promoting bone marrow donation. Combined, the three UK Bone Marrow Registries (the British Bone Marrow Registry (BBMR), the Welsh Bone Marrow Registry and the Anthony Nolan Trust Bone Marrow Registry) are the third largest in the world. In 2008, the Department agreed a business case from the NHS Blood and Transplant Authority to support the BBMR through to 2012.

Departmental Redundancy

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 20 January 2009,  Official Report, column 1370W, on redundancy, how many staff left his Department under staff exit schemes with a severance package worth  (a) between £100,000 and £125,000,  (b) between £125,001 and £150,000,  (c) between £150,001 and £200,000,  (d) between £200,001 and £250,000,  (e) between £250,001 and £500,000,  (f) between £500,001 and £1,000,000 and  (g) over £1,000,000 in each year since 2005-06.

Ben Bradshaw: Information on severance packages given to staff leaving the Department under exit schemes in each year since 2005-06 is presented in the following table:
	
		
			   2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 £100,000-£125,000 3 1 7 
			 £125,000-£150,000 3 3 5 
			 £150,000-£200,000 6 1 7 
			 £200,000-£250,000 2 2 3 
			 £250,000-£500,000 2 4 5 
			 £500,000-£1,000,000 5 3 1 
			 Total 21 14 28

Enfield Primary Care Trust: Health Visitors

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many health visitors were employed in Enfield Primary Care Trust in each of the last 11 years.

Ann Keen: The information on the number of health visitors in the Enfield primary care trust (PCT) for each of the last 11 years is provided in the following table. The number of health visitors has reduced from 2005 onwards, however there are more people working in children's services in the community. The way services are organised now means that health visitors are more likely to be working in teams in which support for families is available in more innovative ways, such as in children's centres.
	
		
			  NHS hospital and community health services: Health visitors in the Enfield PCT( 1)  as at 30 September each specified year 
			   Health visitors (headcount) 
			 1997 62 
			 1998 58 
			 1999 59 
			 2000 54 
			 2001 55 
			 2002 59 
			 2003 65 
			 2004 58 
			 2005 56 
			 2006 50 
			 2007 50 
			 (1) In 2002 Enfield Community Healthcare NHS Trust and Barnet and Chase Farm NHS Trust merged to form Enfield PCT. Figures prior to 2002 are an aggregate of these predecessor organisations.  Source: The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.

Human Papilloma Virus: Vaccination

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people eligible for the Cervarix vaccine over the lifetime of the contract.

Dawn Primarolo: The current contract for human papilloma virus vaccine is for a period of three years, and covers provision of the vaccine to girls in England, the devolved administrations, United Kingdom territories and children of the armed forces covered by the Ministry of Defence health provision.
	Approximately 2.4 million girls and young women in England will be eligible for the vaccine during this period.

Infant Foods

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons the NHS Healthy Start Scheme includes entitlement to free infant formula; and under what circumstances free infant formula is provided.

Dawn Primarolo: Healthy Start provides a nutritional safety net for pregnant women and children under four years old in low income and disadvantaged families. The scheme provides vouchers that can be put towards the cost of cow's milk, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, and infant formula milk at participating retailers. We recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, and the scheme encourages this. However, if mothers choose not to breastfeed, formula is the only safe alternative for children under one year of age, as the use of cow's milk is not recommended. This is why infant formula is included in the scheme. However, follow-on formula is not included because scientific advice is that follow-on formula has no additional nutritional benefits for healthy babies over six months old.

Mental Health Services: Women

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on implementing the Women's Mental Health strategy since it was published.

Phil Hope: Significant progress has been made since the publication of the Women's Mental Health strategy "Into the Mainstream" in 2002 (a copy has been placed in the Library) and the implementation guidance "Mainstreaming Gender Equality and Women's Mental Health" in 2003 (a copy has already been placed in the Library).
	The Gender Equality and Women's Mental Health programme was established by the National Institute of Mental Health in England (NIMHE) in 2004, to progress the implementation of "Into the Mainstream". It carried out a benchmarking of mental health trusts in 2007, to assess progress made since the publication of "Into the Mainstream".
	Many mental health trusts now have a champion for women's mental health within the organisation; a number of trusts have developed a women's mental health strategy, with approximately half of trusts describing specific initiatives for women; and 92 per cent. of responding trusts reported developments in psychological therapies from which women have benefited.
	We expect that a more detailed progress report will be published later this year. The Gender Equality and Women's Mental Health programme continues to be a key national programme and will move into the new national mental health delivery unit, in April 2009.

NHS Bank

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many NHS trusts are borrowing money from the NHS Bank; how much each trust has paid in interest on such loans since they were taken out; and what rate of interest each is paying;
	(2)  how many NHS trusts lenders to the NHS Bank; and how much each has received in interest on such loans since they were taken out;
	(3)  how much profit the NHS Bank made in each of the last three years;
	(4)  what the interest rate for  (a) borrowers and  (b) lenders to the NHS Bank was in each month since such interest charges were introduced.

Ben Bradshaw: The NHS bank function no longer operates.
	The Department makes loans for capital investment to national health service trusts and NHS foundation trusts and to NHS trusts for working capital. Details of interest rates and interest paid to date on current loans by trust are given in the table. Interest payments are made to the Department and are available for spending elsewhere in the NHS.
	The Department does not take deposits from NHS trusts or foundation trusts.
	The interest rate paid on loans is the National Loan Fund (NLF) Equal Instalment of Principle rate. The interest rate is updated daily and the actual rate charged relates to the term of loan. The rate is published daily by the Debt Management Office. Current and historic rates are available at:
	www.dmo.gov.uk/index.aspx?page=PWLB/PWLB_Interest_ Rates
	
		
			  Interest rates and total interest paid on current loans to NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts from the Department of Health 
			   National loan fund rate (fixed for term)  (percentage)  Total interest paid to date (£ 000) 
			 Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.70 146 
			 Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.90 606 
			 Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 3.04 0 
			 Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust 4.48 194 
			 Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.40 2,131 
			 Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 3.94 0 
			 Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2.67 0 
			 Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 2.92 0 
			 Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.85 874 
			 City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust 4.25 639 
			 City Hospitals Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust 4.30 217 
			 Derby Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.85 1,101 
			 Doncaster and Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 5.05 327 
			 Dorset Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 5.50 191 
			 Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.95 978 
			 Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.69 0 
			 Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.08 0 
			 Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.90 74 
			 Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.90 186 
			 Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 5.60 283 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 5.21 0 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 5.34 0 
			 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.65 248 
			 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.60 691 
			 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.50 243 
			 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.45 78 
			 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 4.40 719 
			 Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 5.05 78 
			 Norfolk and Waveney NHS Foundation Trust 3.87 0 
			 Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 5.55 270 
			 Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust 4.12 0 
			 Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust 4.55 1,792 
			 Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust 5.05 746 
			 Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4.80 571 
			 Stockport NHS Foundation Trust 4.80 2,937 
			 Stockport NHS Foundation Trust 3.43 0 
			 The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust 2.57 0 
			 The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust 3.23 0 
			 University Hospital of South Manchester 3.51 0 
			 Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust 5.40 1,374 
			 Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust 5.45 459 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 1,533 
			 Royal Bolton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 5.50 367 
			 Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust 5.40 2,807 
			 East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust 5.45 715 
			 East Cheshire NHS Trust 5.50 570 
			 East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 350 
			 Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust 5.50 1,141 
			 George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust 5.45 604 
			 Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 5.45 263 
			 Hereford Hospitals NHS Trust 5.50 268 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 828 
			 Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust 5.35 2,212 
			 Mayday Healthcare NHS Trust 5.50 897 
			 Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust 5.45 1,737 
			 North Bristol NHS Trust 5.05 4,890 
			 Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 5.50 718 
			 North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 5.20 1,174 
			 North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust 5.45 1,375 
			 North West London Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 2,184 
			 Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust 5.40 1,868 
			 Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust 5.45 218 
			 Queen Elizabeth Hospital Kings Lynn NHS Trust 5.50 514 
			 Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic and District NHS Trust 5.50 276 
			 Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust 5.05 3,489 
			 Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Health Care NHS Trust 5.45 701 
			 Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust 5.50 1,002 
			 South Warwickshire General Hospitals NHS Trust 5.35 1,763 
			 Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 2,189 
			 St George's Healthcare NHS Trust 5.45 3,115 
			 Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust 4.95 4,481 
			 The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust 5.45 1,251 
			 The Royal West Sussex NHS Trust 5.20 1,629 
			 Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust 5.50 138 
			 Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust 4.19 122 
			 University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust 5.50 485 
			 West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 1,026 
			 West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust 5.50 159 
			 Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust 5.30 2,528 
			 Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust 5.45 438 
			 Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 5.45 2,291 
			 Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust 5.35 1,632 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 3.97 65 
			 Brighton and Sussex University Hospital NHS Trust 4.01 186 
			 North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 5.10 29 
			 North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 4.34 17 
			 Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust 5.20 53 
			 Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust 3.98 28 
			 St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust 5.20 17 
			 St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust 3.98 170 
			 Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust 5.15 77 
			 Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust 4.07 42 
			 Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 5.39 968 
			 Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust 5.32 1,547 
			 Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust 1.63 0 
			 The Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust 5.31 180 
			 University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust 5.31 523 
			 West Middlesex University NHS Trust 5.30 480 
			 West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust 4.69 116 
			 Weston Area Health NHS Trust 5.32 479 
			 Weston Area Health NHS Trust 1.40 0 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 0.82 0 
			 East Cheshire 2.39 0 
			 North East Ambulance Service NHS Trust 4.88 39 
			 Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust 4.19 251 
			 Queen Elizabeth Hospital Kings Lynn NHS Trust 4.86 210 
			 Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic and District NHS Trust 4.85 31 
			 Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 4.85 184 
			 Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 4.19 305 
			 Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust 4.88 169 
			 East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust 3.48 13 
			 Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust 2.82 17 
			 Hereford Hospitals NHS Trust 2.69 0 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust 3.65 0 
			 Warrington and Halton Hospitals Foundation Trust 4.88 109 
			 Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust 2.69 0 
			 Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust 2.69 0 
			 South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust 4.88 84 
			 South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust 3.48 30 
			 Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 4.85 192 
			 West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust 5.40 467 
			 West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust 5.40 362

Physiology: Manpower

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) audiologists,  (b) cardiac physiologists,  (c) gastro-intestinal physiologists,  (d) neurophysiologists and  (e) respiratory physiologists are employed by the NHS.

Ann Keen: Gastro-intestinal physiologists are not identified separately in the National Health Service Workforce Census. The number of audiologists, cardiac-physiologists, neurophysiologists and respiratory physiologists are given in the following table.
	
		
			   Headcount  Full-time  e quivalent (FTE) 
			 Audiologists 802 624 
			 Cardiac-physiologists 989 820 
			 Neurophysiologists 52 48 
			 Respiratory Physiologists 128 103

Royal Blackburn Hospital: Accident and Emergency Departments

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with  (a) the North West Strategic Health Authority and  (b) the East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust on the Trust's recent performance figures for the accident and emergency department at the Royal Blackburn Hospital; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Following the hon. Member's recent question at oral Health questions, and his tabling of this parliamentary question, I have sought assurances from the North West strategic health authority (SHA) from the East Lancashire Hospitals National Health Service Trust on its recent accident and emergency performance at the Royal Blackburn hospital. I will be writing to the hon. Member shortly to outline the action the SHA and the Trust have taken.

Social Services: Elderly

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of older people in each local authority received local authority funded  (a) residential and  (b) domiciliary care in each of the last 10 years.

Phil Hope: Data on the number of older people receiving local authority funded domiciliary and residential care is collected and published by the NHS Information Centre for health and social care.
	Information showing the numbers and proportion of older people aged 65 and over in local authority funded residential care, for the year ending 31 March from 1999 to 2008 and the number and proportion of older people aged 65 and over receiving local authority funded domiciliary care, for the year ending 31 March from 2002 to 2008 has been placed in the Library. Data on domiciliary care is not held centrally prior to 2001.

Transplant Surgery: Foreigners

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 23 February 2009,  Official Report, columns 259-60W, on transplant surgery: foreigners, how many of the organs used for transplants to overseas residents came from UK donors on the organ donation register; and at which units in private hospitals the transplants took place.

Ann Keen: The following table shows the Organ Donor Register status of deceased donors whose organs were transplanted in national health service hospitals into patients recorded as resident outside the UK(1), April 1998 to March 2008. Information is not collated centrally at which units within private hospitals or NHS trusts, transplants take place.
	(1) Excluding Republic of Ireland
	
		
			  Organ Donor Register status of deceased donors 
			   Number 
			 Registered 113 
			 Not registered 299 
			 Not recorded 219 
			 Total 631

Anti-Semitism

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills pursuant to the answer of 11 March 2009,  Official Report, column 545W, on higher education: anti-Semitism, what progress has been made in setting up the dedicated sub-group to the Cross Government Working Group against anti-Semitism; who the initial members of the sub-group will be; on what date the first meeting of the group is planned; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: The following organisations have been invited to an initial meeting on Tuesday 7 April:
	Union of Jewish Students
	Community Security Trust
	Board of Deputies of British Jews
	Universities UK
	GuildHE
	Equality Challenge Unit
	National Union of Students
	University and College Union
	Association of Managers of Student Services in Higher Education
	Association for Manager's in Student Unions
	The Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education
	Higher Education Funding Council for England
	All Party Parliamentary Group Against Anti-Semitism
	Communities and Local Government (observer status)
	At this first meeting the group will agree its continuing membership and terms of reference. We see this group as playing an important role in helping to tackle anti-Semitism in higher education.

Basic Skills

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many people have registered for skills accounts in the last 12 months.

Si�n Simon: The first year of Skills Accounts trials began in 29 September 2008 in two LSC regions, South East and East Midlands, and national trials will begin in September 2009. The aim of the regional trials is to develop and test a high quality experience for users, rather than maximise volumes. This means there are no targets for the number of individuals registering for a skills account as part of the trial. As part of the preparation for national roll out from 2010/11 we will model expected volumes while ensuring skills accounts meet the needs of users.
	As of March 20th, a total of 10,823 individuals had opened a Skills Account. Of these 7,905 had done so via the Careers Advice Service, 1,864 via the web and 1,054 via one of accredited learning providers in the trial regions.

Basic Skills

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many hits the Skills Accounts website has received since it was set up.

Si�n Simon: The first year of Skills Accounts trials began in 29 September 2008 in two LSC regions, South East and East Midlands, and national trials will begin in September 2009. The aim of the regional trials is to develop and test a high quality experience for users, rather than maximise volumes. This means there are no targets for the number of individuals registering for a skills account as part of the trial. As part of the preparation for national roll out from 2010/11 we will model expected volumes whilst ensuring skills accounts meet the needs of users.
	At this stage we are not collect data on the number of hits on the skills accounts website (accessed via DirectGov) as the system is continuing to develop. An evaluation of the trial will capture detailed reflections about the user experience. When development of the system is complete we will put in place ways of evaluating the frequency of visits to the website and how the tools on it are used.

Departmental Databases

Eleanor Laing: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many  (a) records and  (b) data fields there are in the Managing Information Across Partners system.

Si�n Simon: I have been asked to reply 
	as the Minister responsible for the Learning and Skills Council.
	Managing Information Across Partners (MIAP) provides a set of services in support of the Transformational Government Agenda. It is about streamlining and improving how information on learners and learning is used within the education and training sectors so that excellent services are made available to individuals, employers and their communities.
	MIAP offers three internet based services: a provider facing Learner Registration Service which assigns a unique learner number to everyone over the age of 14 in education and training; a learner facing Learner Record Service which is in development, and which uses the unique learner number to enable learner access to their lifelong learning records for the very first time; and a UK Register of Learning Providers, which supports the sharing of learning provider information and brokerage. These services are supported by best practice data sharing protocols in line with Data Protection Legislation.
	Over 5.6 million unique learner numbers have been created. For each unique learner number, a unique learner number record is created with up to 16 data fields, of which 6 are mandatory.
	The UKRLP lists over 22,000 learning and training providers. These records provide details of individual training organisations, the services they provide, along with links to other information such as inspection reports.

Departmental Training

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills which training courses were  (a) available to and  (b) taken up by (i) civil servants and (ii) Ministers in his Department in the last 12 months.

Si�n Simon: The Department primarily offers a range of learning and development opportunities to employees linked to the Professional Skills for Government agenda and its business and improvement objectives. The programmes include: Leadership; Policy Development Skills; Strategic Thinking; Analysis and Use of Evidence; Programme and Project Management; Contract Management; Financial Management; People Management; and Drafting and Writing Skills. Courses can be off-the-job training, e-learning or access to a range of learning and coaching materials. Information about employee learning and development take-up is not held centrally and a search of local records could be obtained at disproportionate cost.
	Learning and development courses have been arranged for Ministers in the Department in the last 12 months and the following courses have been undertaken:
	Foreign language lessons
	Cabinet Committees
	European Union
	Media Training.

Further Education

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills if he will make it his policy to issue guidance to post-16 specialist colleges on the  (a) funding available for capital projects to be undertaken by such colleges and  (b) application process for such funding.

Si�n Simon: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is responsible for the administration of the Further Education (FE) capital programme, which includes capital allocations to post-16 specialist colleges. The LSC is subsequently responsible for the management of the programme and for the issuing of any associated guidance.
	As we have previously announced, we asked Sir Andrew Foster to report on the background to the current situation we have with the FE capital programmewhich he is due to complete later this month.
	We need to understand how the current serious problems arose and what lessons must be learned for the future operation and delivery of the FE capital programme, particularly within the context of the new Machinery of Government arrangements.

Higher Education: Research

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the distribution of research funding maximises the potential to assist small and medium-sized, science-based and manufacturing enterprises located close to research universities.

David Lammy: Research funding for universities is allocated on the basis of excellence and not proximity to businesses. And whilst there is no support specifically targeting businesses located close to research universities, Government do provide support through a range of programmes to help businesses meet the challenges they face in starting up, running and growing their operations.
	The Technology Strategy Board and its partners provide support for businesses through a number of mechanisms including collaborative R and D, which supports joint projects between business and academia; networking to help industry access knowledge and information central to innovation growth; and through knowledge transfer partnerships, which support the transfer of knowledge from academia to a business through the transfer of people.
	Innovation vouchers, announced in the 2008 Innovation Nation White Paper, are also a means to help small businesses benefit from the expertise offered by the research base. The voucher is used by the business to 'buy' services such as specialist advice from a knowledge base institution of their choice.
	Grant for research and development, available regionally through the English regional development agencies, provide grants of up to 500,000 to help small and medium sized businesses to research and develop technologically innovative products and processes. DIUS is also working with RDAs to adopt a new national framework for proof of concept support to provide a tailored package of support that may include funding, access to facilities, networks and mentoring, and help for businesses to become investment ready.

Science: Higher Education

Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what steps the Government is taking to increase the uptake of science, technology, engineering and mathematics courses in universities by British students.

David Lammy: The Government are committed to increasing the number of young people studying science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects post-16 and in higher education. The Department is working closely with the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) on STEM skills to ensure that teaching and learning of science in schools is sufficiently interesting and challenging to inspire more able pupils to pursue STEM subjects in higher education and beyond.
	DCSF is investing 140 million to support the STEM agenda in schools in England. The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has undertaken a 350 million programme of work to support strategically important and vulnerable subjects which include STEM and an additional funding of 75 million to support the high costs of some science subjects.

Students: Loans

David Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many complaints have been made against the Student Loans Company for their use of bailiffs in error in cases where former students have not defaulted on their payments in the last 12 months.

David Lammy: The Student Loans Company (SLC) employs debt collectors where borrowers persistently fail to respond to SLC's attempts to contact them by telephone or letter. SLC does not employ bailiffs for the purposes of debt collection. However, if SLC's debt collectors also fail and SLC proceeds to litigate, the courts engage bailiffs to serve papers or to enforce county court judgments.
	The SLC does not maintain statistics for this category of complaint. Generic complaints about the use of debt collectors by the SLC amounted to 37 cases in the last 12 months, which is a small percentage of the cases managed by debt collectors.
	In all cases, the borrower was in default when the debt collector approached them. The only reported exception was the case of a borrower who appeared to be in default but was due to have the repayments met by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) under the now closed Repayment of Teacher Loans Scheme.

Work Experience

Robert Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills 
	(1)  when he expects the National Internship Scheme to commence;
	(2)  which body will administer payments to businesses participating in the National Internship Scheme;
	(3)  pursuant to the answer of 19 January 2009,  Official Report, columns 1165-6W, on work experience, what further progress has been made on implementing the national internship scheme; which organisations have agreed to take part; how many extra internships will be available at these organisations in 2009 compared to 2008; and how many places will be available in each local authority area.

David Lammy: The new internship programme will take effect from the autumn of 2009, and will offer graduates the opportunity both to apply their learning in a working situation and to build the work ready skills they will need for permanent employment. We are still working with stakeholders to finalise the details of the programme but expect to make a further announcement about our plans in the next few weeks.
	The Government are committed to helping new graduates into work in these challenging economic times and internships are one option in a range of opportunities available to those who are unable immediately to find a suitable job.

Young People: North West

Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many and what proportion of  (a) males and  (b) females aged between 18 and 21 years were in (i) education, (ii) employment and (iii) training in each local authority area in the North West in each of the last five years.

Si�n Simon: Estimates of 18 to 21-year-olds in education, employment or training are calculated using the Labour Force Survey (LFS). The sample sizes on the LFS for small geographical regions, such as local authority, are too small to make robust estimates. However, we can estimate the proportion of 18-year-olds in education, employment or training from information collected by the Connexions service. This is given as follows.
	
		
			  Proportion of 18-year-olds in education, employment or training 
			  Percentage 
			   Education  Employment  Training  EET 
			 England 63.4 21.3 8.0 92.7 
			 North West 60.8 20.2 10.1 91.1 
			  
			 Cheshire 63.0 25.5 6.1 94.6 
			 Warrington 58.8 26.1 7.4 92.3 
			 Cumbria 53.4 24.1 16.2 93.7 
			 Bolton 55.0 23.0 10.9 88.8 
			 Bury 67.8 18.4 6.8 93.0 
			 Manchester 69.5 13.2 5.8 88.5 
			 Oldham 65.5 15.4 11.1 92.0 
			 Rochdale 61.3 21.4 9.6 92.3 
			 Salford 57.6 24.7 9.0 91.3 
			 Stockport 69.7 16.2 6.2 92.1 
			 Trafford 73.0 12.7 7.6 93.3 
			 Tameside 61.6 19.9 11.2 92.7 
			 Wigan 55.3 21.2 12.4 88.9 
			 Halton 48.3 25.9 8.9 83.1 
			 Knowsley 48.8 21.2 13.6 83.7 
			 Liverpool 56.4 18.1 12.4 87.0 
			 Sefton 64.1 19.1 7.4 90.6 
			 St. Helens 61.6 17.2 10.2 89.0 
			 Wirral 58.7 20.9 10.5 90.1 
			 Blackburn With Darwen 62.6 17.7 9.4 89.8 
			 Blackpool 63.5 18.7 8.5 90.8 
			 Lancashire 59.1 20.9 12.5 92.5

Departmental NDPBs

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the Answer of 4 November 2008,  Official Report, columns 453-4W, on the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, by what date he expects the discussions on the role of the bodies referred to to be completed.

Mike O'Brien: The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Office of Nuclear Development, Sustainable Development Commission and Office of Climate Change all have a clear role to play in DECC achieving its objectives for energy and climate change.
	The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority is a non-departmental public body set up under the Energy Act 2004 to ensure that the UK's civil public nuclear legacy sites are decommissioned and cleaned up efficiently and effectively.
	The Office for Nuclear Development was created to facilitate new nuclear investment in the UK. Its aims are to enable operators to build and operate new nuclear power stations in the UK from the earliest possible date and to enable new nuclear to make the fullest contribution it is capable of, with no public subsidy, and with unnecessary obstacles removed; to build and maintain the UK as the best market in the world for companies to do business in nuclear power; and to create and support a globally competitive UK supply chain, focusing on high value added activities to take advantage of the UK and worldwide nuclear programme. OND brings together the Government teams and resources focused on facilitating new nuclear investment in the UK and provide industry with a single point of contact.
	The Office of Climate Change is now part of DECC but retains the capacity to undertake cross-cutting projects and is funded by contributing Departments across Whitehall.
	The Sustainable Development Commission is an independent adviser to Government on sustainable development. Its role has not been affected by the creation of DECC and my Department will continue to benefit from its advice.

Departmental Reorganisation

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change by what date he expects all of his Department's staff to be based in his Department's offices.

Mike O'Brien: The first phase of moves of DECC staff into 3 Whitehall Place (the Department's London office) is currently underway. Planning for the second phase is currently under way and it is not yet possible to specify a date for the completion of the moves but it is expected to be during the summer. DECC staff are already in residence in Atholl House, the Department's Scottish office.

Energy: Research

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his Department's research and development budget in support of research into clean energy is in the next 12 months.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	The Department for Innovation Universities and Skills (DIUS) provides funding to the Technology Strategy Board and the Research Councils to support research and development.
	The Research Councils planned expenditure on energy research and related training is expected to exceed 300 million over the period 2008-11.
	The Technology Strategy Board has a current portfolio of 76 collaborative projects (worth ca 140 million) on emerging low carbon energy technologies. Following two recent calls in Carbon Abatement Technologies and Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Technologies, further funding will be committed in the next 12 months. It is also expanding its portfolio in areas relating to the low carbon agenda through a range of initiatives including Innovation Platformsone focused on Low Carbon Vehicles is coordinating over 100 million of public sector support to accelerate the market introduction of ultra low carbon vehicles.
	In addition, DIUS has committed to provide up to 50 million pa (through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and Technology Strategy Board) to the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI), to be matched by industry partners. ETI is establishing a portfolio of development projects in low carbon energy technologies.
	The Department of Energy and Climate Change also provides some funding through the Environmental Transformation Fund (ETF) for clean energy research. The annual budget for the ETF and its component programmes, including the Carbon Trust, will be agreed in due course.

Forests: Carbon Emissions

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what consideration he has given to the merits of establishing schemes for forest protection as a measure of reducing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere before  (a) 2012,  (b) 2020 and  (c) 2030.

Joan Ruddock: The Climate talks in Bali in December 2007 recognised that reduced emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD) should be part of a post-2012 climate deal. The Bali Action Plan paves the way for the development of incentives to reduce emissions from both wholesale deforestation and more gradual damage, and to consider how to reward the sustainable management of forests ahead of the 15(th) Conference of the Parties in Copenhagen in 2009.
	We know that reducing deforestation will be expensive; available estimates suggest it will cost in the range 10 billion to 20 billion a year to halve deforestation by 2030. But the evidence also suggests that the benefits of reducing deforestation will be many times greater than the costs. The Poznan Forestry Statement made in December last year agreed that:
	financial flows to support Reductions in Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) efforts must be adequate, predictable and sustainable, and results based, with developed countries contributing significantly.
	The UK is in the process of discussing options for financing mechanisms for forestry, although this must occur in the context of discussions on broader climate change finance. The UK as part of the European Union will take on its fair share of financing such actions in developing countries, and is examining credible and innovative options for raising significant volumes of finance. The European Council will discuss these issues in more detail at its June meeting, following further consultation with other developed and developing countries.
	Pre-2012 support for capacity building will be necessary and funding for early demonstration projects will prepare the groundwork for later investment. We are undertaking a study to examine the options for frontloading finance for forestry and options for a financing mechanism that uses public funding to mobilise substantial private investment into sustainable forest management, leading to REDD+ (enhancement of forest carbon stocks) and co-benefits such as protecting biodiversity and eradicating poverty. We hope to be able to consult on the outcomes of this in April or May this year.
	However, sustainable funding at the scale required to tackle deforestation effectively will be unlikely to be provided through public funding alone, particularly in the longer-term. Ultimately, we need to build a mechanism which is self-sustaining, and the carbon market seems to offer the best opportunity for this. Therefore, limited access to the carbon market from 2012 to 2020 could offer an important way of working towards full market access in the longer-term and would send a strong signal to investors. We welcome the European Commission's leadership and the December Environment Council Conclusions which suggests that a new market mechanism for forest credits should be established on a trial basis and deforestation credits could be valid for Government compliance with post 2012 commitments.

Oil: Reserves

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2009,  Official Report, columns 1239-40W, on oil: reserves, what quantities of the 11.1 million tonnes of oil are stored in which countries.

Mike O'Brien: Under EU Council Directive 2006/67/EC, member states of the European Union (EU) can hold stocks of petroleum products on behalf of each other in order to meet their oil stocking obligation.
	The UK has bilateral agreements with Belgium, Denmark, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Sweden where they can hold stocks on behalf of UK companies and UK companies can hold stocks on their behalf. The UK also has an agreement with New Zealand under which UK companies may hold stocks on behalf of the New Zealand Government.
	Bilateral agreements are negotiated in advance for each calendar quarter. The following table shows the net stocks held under bilateral agreements between January to March 2009; This shows that of the 11.1 million tonnes of oil, 2.5 million are held overseas.
	
		
			  Net stocks held under bilateral agreements in QI 2009 
			 Country Volume (million tonnes) 
			 Belgium 0.215 
			 Denmark 0.259 
			 France 0.088 
			 Ireland -0.307 
			 Netherlands 1.536 
			 New-Zealand -0.035 
			 Sweden 0.745

Written Questions: Government Responses

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to answer Question 252857, tabled on 26 January 2009, on the letters of 19 November and 30 December 2008 from the hon. Member for Forest of Dean, on the Oakenhill opencast coal site.

Mike O'Brien: holding answer 25 February 2009
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 18 March 2009,  Official Report, column 1260W.

Community Relations

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the written answer by Baroness Andrews of 9 March 2009,  Official Report,  House of Lords, WA212-13, on the Preventing Violent Extremism Pathfinder Fund, if her Department will adopt a policy requiring all local authorities that have received additional funding from it to prevent violent extremism through the non-ring-fenced area-based grant to report annually  (a) to which community groups and individuals they have allocated funding and  (b) on the work they have undertaken and how they plan to monitor its effectiveness.

Sadiq Khan: Funding has been provided to local authorities through the area based granta non-ring fenced grant fund which allows local authorities to decide the most effective and efficient routes to invest their resources for the delivery of local priorities.
	Authorities are measured on the outcomes they achieve using this funding through the national indicator set.
	All authorities, including those who have received area-based grant funding in support of their work to prevent violent extremism, must therefore report to Government annually against national indicator 35, an indicator in the national indicator set which measures progress in building resilience to violent extremism. Work to prevent violent extremism is included in the comprehensive area assessment process, led by the Audit Commission, which assesses how well local services are working together to improve the quality of life for local people.
	We continue to work closely with local authorities to deliver this agenda and the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government wrote to the Speaker of the House of Commons on 17 March, copied to the hon. Member for Wycombe (Mr. Goodman), agreeing to provide information about the groups that local authorities are working with.

Community Relations: Islam

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will commission research into allegations of physical violence against people attending mosques in England and Wales.

Alan Campbell: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government take all allegations of physical violence seriously, however there are currently no plans to commission work in this area.

Departmental Recruitment

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2009,  Official Report, column 1689W, on departmental recruitment, what estimate she has made of the annual salary cost of the new  (a) permanent,  (b) temporary and  (c) agency staff recruited by her Department in each year since 2005-06.

Sadiq Khan: The estimated annual salary cost of  (a) permanent,  (b) temporary and  (c) agency staff recruited in each year since 2005-06 is as follow:
	
		
			
			  Staff Type  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  Grand Total 
			 Permanent Staff 1,358,118 1,665,935 2,876,301 2,732,144 8,632,498 
			 Short Term Contracts 815,913 876,215 894,944 1,222,423 3,809,495 
			 Agency Staff 2,126,139 3,130,540 5,774,867 6,222,138 17,253,684 
			 Grand Total 4,300,170 5,672,690 9,546,112 10,176,705 29,695,677

Non-domestic Rates: Small Businesses

Ian Cawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will assess the merits of making the small business rate relief scheme automatic.

John Healey: In light of the economic downturn, the Government are sympathetic to the aim of helping smaller businesses, however, without the application it would be difficult for the local authority to establish whether a ratepayer occupies more than one property. This is a condition of entitlement to the small business rate relief scheme, particularly if that property is located outside of the billing area in which relief is being claimed. Those ratepayers certifying that they meet the given criteria do receive the relief.

Non-domestic Rates: Small Businesses

Ian Cawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her most recent estimate is of the number of businesses in each local authority area which have received rate relief in each year since 2005.

John Healey: The latest reliable information on the number of business claiming rate relief is that, at 31 December 2006, local authorities reported that there were 392,000 businesses claiming small business rate relief.
	Data on the number of businesses who receive rate relief as at 31 December 2008 are currently being collected and will be available later this year. This will include the number of businesses receiving the various mandatory and discretionary reliefs and small business rate relief but not transitional relief.

Social Rented Housing

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to her Department's press notice of 2 September 2008 entitled Ensuring a fair housing market for all, how many of the planned 5,500 new social rented homes have been  (a) built and  (b) occupied to date.

Iain Wright: On 2 September 2008, we announced that 400 million would be brought forward to deliver 5,500 more social rented homes. Of this 100 million has been made available in 2008-09 and 300 million in 2009-10. On average it takes around 12 months to build out most schemes, so it is too early for any to have been completed and occupied.